A Dad’s Grief …

Usually I hear from moms whose children have been affected by bacterial meningitis.  This week I heard from a dad.  Dads grieve just as much as moms, but their voices aren’t always heard.  I heard this dad’s voice breaking, as he talked about losing his 16 year old son this past summer.  He is lost in his despair, and as a single dad, now focusing on the health and mental well-being of his 14 year old daughter.  Since his son was 1 ½ years old, the two were on the hockey rink.  Many years of memories and good times that were wiped away in less than 24 hours by this relentless disease.   There is not any family member that is not affected by losing a child.  Parents, brothers and sisters, friends, other family members. Everyone is in shock at the quick way this disease has taken their loved one.  I carry these stories in my heart, wishing I had the words to make these people feel better.  But, I know from my own experience, there are no words.  It does help to talk to other people, who understand what has happened, because we have lived through it, but we can’t make the loss go away.  It doesn’t take away the grief to talk, but it gives you a chance to talk about the life that you loved more than you can ever have imagined.