ABSTRACT
As I was preparing my thoughts for this chapter, I learned that my father had died. My father was not supposed to die; I had just seen him three days earlier. I sat across from him as our family gathered at a local restaurant to celebrate my younger sister’s birthday. I can still see him in my mind, sitting there across from me. We’re talking about a recent soccer game between the United States and Mexico. Mexico won. I’m watching him as he plays with my son, teaching him how to give a “high five.” These are supposed to be the best years of my life with my father, now my best friend. My father was happy and healthy with many more years ahead of him . . . years for me to hug him, years for him to play with my son and daughter, years for him to listen and offer advice, and more years to be that model of humanity I strive so hard to follow.
