And the Days Go By . . .

My Father had his prostate surgery yesterday. Thank God everything went well. He is at a hospital 1 1/2 hours from where I live, which doesn't exactly make visiting an easy proposition, but my mom (who can't travel that distance due to health reasons) offered to watch my children today so that I could go visit with my sister and aunt. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to go. He is really doing very well. He has managed to retain his sense of humor and the nurse had him up and walking a bit while we were there, so the healing process is starting.

It was still difficult, however, to see him in pain and looking rather feeble. My father is 6' 2" tall, strong, silent, and proud. Like it or not, in the hospital you tend to leave a whole bunch of your dignity at the door. It's hard to acknowledge that he is getting old, but he is. Three of my classmates have lost a parent in the past year, and I know that day is coming for me as well. I don't know when that day will be of course, but I get the sense that whether my mom and dad's passing comes this year or twenty years from now, it will be equally painful. I don't know that there is ever a time you are really ready to let your parents go, even though my faith tells me that they would go to a better place. It's just one of those bridges I'm going to have to cross when the Good Lord decides that it is time.