The Legacy

You know how some writers experience writers block...Well, this writing experience has been the opposite for me! Thoughts and stories have flooded my mind! I find it difficult to know which way to go! If I get the chance to drive ALONE...I often turn off the radio and just think! When is the last time that you had some quiet time?

I am such a thinker, sometimes I have to turn the radio on just to get a break from reflecting. So today as I was driving by myself and thinking....... Many memories raced through my mind!

This is what I was thinking about today...I wish that everyone could have met my father! He was one of those special special people that you never forget after meeting! He had a heart that was bigger than he was! And he wasn't the smallest guy! He had a special way of making people feel special! That was evident at his funeral! When we had to open up the overflow in our church and the entire place was completely full!

My loving father passed on March 12, 2009 from an unexpected massive heart attack! He lived with a heart condition that had a symptom of sudden death and that is exactly what took his life!

His funeral was a very special experience listening to person after person say...I would have never missed this chance to come pay my respects to such an incredible person or your dad was really a great man. Here are some of the things said about my father...

"I will always remember Danny's smiling face and happy demeanor"

"Dan emanated an air of excitement because he seemed to be so upbeat about any given subject. He had a way of making you feel the focus of a conversation even if it was about someone or something else. You felt drawn into his world as a special guest and treasured confidant. He could make you feel like a close friend in a matter of minutes and at ease with the conversation of the moment. To Dan... we all felt special and the one he wanted to be talking to. I miss his energy but remember his personality each time we connected. We are all happy to have known him and shared time together while he was here with us. Dan was special indeed and I feel he was a friend. The memory will live on with me and I imagine with everyone he was around. If only we could all leave such a legacy."

 

 

You see, my dad had touched peoples lives all the time. He had a way of letting people know that he truly cared about the people that came across his path. He would give his last...no matter what! He loved life even though he had many reasons to be upset with some of the things he was called to endure! He was such an example of JOY in the JOURNEY! From lay offs to financial struggles...it didn't matter what he was going through....he could still make light of the situation and laugh! He truly found the JOY in life.

He always taught me that it wasn't a choice between good and bad but our choice should be between good and better! He taught about a higher level of living! He taught me to make the best of everything! He taught me to give unconditionally even if it was your last...even if you needed it more. He taught me to look within for my answers and trust my Heavenly Father. He taught me where to find true happiness. He did this with an incredible woman by his side (but that will be a whole other blog) He taught me to live worthy of the Lord's blessing and to just do the right thing because you should! Unless I was eating ice cream...That man loved him some blue bell ice cream. He was such a funny man! I remember his top 25 list that he made on Facebook...This is what he wrote on his FB page about his top 25 random things about himself.....

1. First things first, Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.
2. I was born in Agana, Guam in the Mariana Islands near the Phillipines.
3. I attended five elementary schools before I was 10 years old.
4. Until I was 16 years of age, I often ate Gerber’s Mixed Cereal as a midnight snack.
5. As a young baseball-playing teenager, I met and spoke to my boyhood baseball idol, Mickey Mantle.
6. I have written and composed over 25 songs since I was fourteen.
7. I was Senior Class President in high school.
8. I met my wife, Gloria, when we were both 16, and we have been going together ever since.
9. In high school, Gloria and I used to earn money for dates by performing and singing together for business groups, banquets, and parties.
10. After 30 years of marriage, I found out that my wife, Gloria, is my sixth cousin.
11. I once poured gasoline on an ant hill, lit it with a match, and then denied having seen a fire when the fire department showed up. I was 28 at the time, married, and father of two.
12. I love to cook. Just ask my family who often come to me when they want tips on cooking.
13. I could eat just grilled chicken, a baked potato, and broccoli every day and be happy. (of course, a little Blue Bell for dessert).
14. While going to college and working at a paint store, I color matched paint for the set of the ABC Network’s “Donnie and Marie Show” (Osmond).
15. I worked for a political action / lobby group in Washington, D.C. and set up an interview on ABC’s “Nightline” for a United States Senator.
16. I once met and shook hands with actors Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau.
17. I trained Shawn Bradley, former Dallas Maverick basketball player, as a ward clerk in the Church, all 7’ 6” of him.
18. I am a 10-year prostate cancer survivor and grateful we caught it early.
19. Our first child was born in our hometown eight months and three weeks after we were married; maybe that’s why some people that knew us had wondered why we left our hometown nine months before and drove 1000 miles to be married in Arizona. It’s all “legit”.
20. I have an alias name, Niel Ward, when I do not want to reveal my real name. It is simply the last four letters of my first and last names.
21. I have lost over 300 total pounds over the course of my life.
22. I have been to 37 of the 50 United States and have lived in eight of them. (Hawaii, Tennessee, Louisiana, Utah, Idaho, Washington, Virginia, and Texas)
23. Although I appear to have dark brown hair, underneath it is really snow white. I have had gray hair since I was a teenager. I am a friend of Clairol Colorsilk Light Ash Brown. Unfortunately, I have passed the curse on to my children.
24. Some graduate from college "with praise and honor" (cum laude); some graduate "with great praise and honor" (magna cum laude), and some "with highest praise and honor" (summa cum laude). I graduated “Oh Lordy” (glad to finish).
25. I realize now that I am older, there are two things that are evident in my life; one, I have started to lose my memory and , two, I can’t remember what the second thing is.

IT IS AN HONOR TO BE HIS DAUGHTER! I FIND JOY EVERYDAY IN HIS LEGACY.



What legacy will you leave?

Find the JOY in your relationships with the people that mean the most to you, as you never know how long that they will be here with you! I love you, Dad!