Happy Birthday to My Daddy

As a little girl, I remember sharing with my parents my biggest dreams and goals. I was so young but I always dreamed so big! When I was young I wanted a dream that I knew I was too young to accomplish,  which was buying them [my parents] a house. My parents never owned a home, and at a young age I realized this, however I was only 8 and didn’t have the resources at the time (if you know what I mean, $$$). So as soon as I had the chance at 12 years old I started working with my Mom to help pay my stuff for the beginning of a new school year. I wanted to contribute my part in the family and saw how hard they worked, that I felt the need to do it as well.
I’ve grown so much since then, but I never lost track of the dream I promised them. I knew that once I went to college I would get a good job to help fulfill this dream. When it came time to graduate college I was so discouraged that I wouldn’t be walking because Grandma passed away the same day. I was so sad, at the loss of a family member AND at not being able to give my parent’s the opportunity to watch me walk  across the stage. I just felt like no one won in the situation everyone was just broken, no one was really “happy” that I graduated because there seriously was no time to even think about it, everything happened so quickly. I have always believed that God has his plans and they are far better than what we can plan for ourselves. So I believed in my heart things would go up from here, I mean they just had to… so I thought.

To my surprise, my Dad was already a step ahead and had gone through the pre-qualifications to obtain a home. I was so surprised but so beyond happy and proud, my Dad was doing this on his own. It felt so nice in my heart to know it “finally” was happening. My Dad’s buying process took a little longer than usual but when he had the keys he showed me his home so proudly. It was a beautiful home, everything I ever imagined it to be. A big kitchen filled with cabinets for mom’s delicious cooking. An indoor porch for my family’s constant get togethers, which happen to be my absolute favorite. We were all just so in shock that this was their home. My brother and I were so so happy that Dad finally was going to be a homeowner. My Dad was so ecstatic, we helped him shop for his new furniture for his new home, it was going to be the perfect ending to a hard year after losing Grandma.

Until things turned for the worst. (You would assume after such a hard year, things would get better). That isn’t always the case. At only a couple weeks after closing and having moved a majority of their stuff, my parents lost their home due to a fire. Mom came back to see the house in flames and minutes later the home was gone..everything  just gone. I received the news from my brother via text message. I was in class and I thought I read the message wrong so I didn’t really pay attention, until I checked my phone again and realized I had numerous missed calls, so I read the message again…”My parent’s house burned down.” I read the message over and over, I tried finding a typo but then I got a picture sent to me, and broke down.. I was so broken. I cried to my brother on the phone telling him that this couldn’t be happening not to them. I asked him if everyone was okay and he said everyone was okay (Thank God!), but that the house was gone. It’s hard to write down what feelings I felt, I was just hurt, broken, saddened, and in complete disbelief. How could this be happening to them?

One of the things that many people tell me is why did I stay in Nevada, and why I didn’t move or go to college outside of the state. These are the type of events that I knew I wanted to be close to my parents. For birthdays or events like these, I wanted to be close enough to my family to be there for them, and that’s what I did. My boyfriend and I left and went to see my parents. When we arrived, I gave gave Dad a hug and said, “Everything will be okay, God has far greater plans for you, I promise..” My Dad is the type of person that will keep calm under pressure he won’t show his emotions but I could see past that and knew how much this affected him… he was hurt, more like shattered.

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Pictures, newly purchased items, and anything else you could think of was gone. I know a lot of people will think, “well that’s just material stuff” but the memories these pictures contained, the hard work these items portrayed, that’s stuff you don’t get back. 

As we headed back home (old home), we all stuck together. I sat in the couch as my little brother cried in my arms, he was so devastated. It’s hard to keep your composure in situations like this…but we did, we somehow did. After the incident happened, I learned a lot about us as a family. Everyone was there for each other, it made happy to see us united and supporting each other. My family is so positive, I’m seriously not joking. They love life so much and always get right back up when things go wrong. If we are simply stuck on the fact that bad things happen to us and life is horrible, we wont move very far. If we stay positive, work together, anything we set our mind to is possible.

Today is my Daddy’s birthday, a day which is so hard to celebrate, because on this same day a couple of years ago, my Dad’s Father (my grandpa) passed away. Can you imagine that, losing a parent on your birthday? But this year has been so hard on my Dad from losing his last parent left (his mother) to losing his home, I just don’t know how he keeps it all together. I look up to him so much, despite people bringing him down, doubting his ability to purchase a home by himself, my Dad proved us all wrong. He proved to me that our goals are far bigger than what we imagine and that dedication and an extraordinary work ethic go hand in hand in accomplishing them. 

 I write blog posts because I enjoy it. I love sharing my thoughts on paper or in this case typing them. I want to motivate others to really never give up on their dreams, just like my Dad motivates me. I know that sounds so cliche. Whether that’s sharing outfit posts to encourage women to feel beautiful on the outside and inside or inspire them to decorate their home. I just want to do something good in this world. But I’m being serious, go out there and do what you want to do, your goals won’t come right around the corner. You will for sure get doors closed on you, people will further themselves, you’ll become friends with people you least imagined, and you’ll realize time passed right by you. But did you accomplish what you wanted? Or did you just sit there and wait for them to come to you?

My Dad is just an example of what not giving up looks like. This weekend my Dad and I talked about how God will give each and everyone obstacles to overcome. He teaches us to believe in ourselves in our most difficult times. My dad has come to terms with everything that has happened and instead of questioning God, thanked him. Because His plans are better, we may not know the reason but we have to trust in Him. And if you don’t trust in him that’s totally fine 🙂 trust in yourself! I’m so proud of my Dad for seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for any situation he embarks. Go out there and do something great in this world. Even the smallest person can see your greatness 😘🙌🏻.

So Happy Birthday to my biggest role model that has taught me so much about life. I will be forever thankful for teaching me to work hard and live life to the absolute fullest regardless of our stumbles along the way. 

Happy Birthday to my Dearest Daddy 🙂