Father’s Day feels different this year.
Ten years ago, grief interrupted my life in ways I never imagined. I remember feeling shattered, fragile, and broken. Everything familiar suddenly felt unfamiliar, and I wasn’t sure how to move forward without my dad.
Today, ten years later, I am no longer as shattered as I once was. Time has softened some of the sharp edges. Life has continued moving forward. Healing has happened. Growth has happened.
But grief has changed me.
As I have reflected during this tenth anniversary year, I realized that what I’ve been grieving most are the memories that never happened.
The basketball games my dad never got to watch.
The volleyball matches he never got to cheer for.
The birth of my fourth child.
My graduation from nursing school.
The countless ordinary moments that became milestones.
Life kept moving, and so much has happened over the last decade. Yet there is still a quiet ache in knowing that someone who meant so much to me is no longer here to be part of it.
I’ve learned that grief is not only mourning what was lost. Sometimes it’s mourning what could have been.
And yet, even here, God has been faithful.
For those who are newly grieving, I want you to know that the intensity of your pain today will not always feel this heavy. The grief may never fully disappear, but it will not always crush you. You will laugh again. You will create new memories. You will find strength you didn’t know you had.
Most importantly, you will discover that God is willing to sit with you in every tear, every question, and every ache.
Ten years later, I still miss my dad.
Ten years later, love still remembers.
Even when the memories stop.
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” — Psalm 34:18
— Julie
Thriving Jewelz
Repent. Return. Remain.
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