07/13/2026
First birthday since my dad passed away. It’s been 7 months, but each milestone without him hits hard, and today I have exceptionally felt his absence. He always stayed awake until midnight so he could be the first to wish me a happy birthday, so looking at my phone when I first woke up and not seeing a notification from him felt really weird. I miss his dearly, and I don’t think I’ll ever feel the same without him, but I’m happy to honor his wishes. His last wish for me while he was in the hospital was to go far with my photography and fulfill my goals of traveling, and I’m happy to report that I’ve been on an assisting gig in Brazil for over a week. It rained today, on my birthday, instead of the nice weather you’d think would happen in Brazil; I took that as a sign that my dad was watching out for me and wishing me a happy birthday. I love and miss you dad, and I hope one day we’ll celebrate our birthdays together once again 💜
