It was September 18, 2016. I had slept over at a friends house the night before doing what sixteen year old girls do at sleepovers. We both ended up sleeping in pretty late until I was forced awake by my phone blowing up with missed calls and text messages.

"Wake up!" "You need to get home right now!" "Its an emergency!" "It's your dad.."

I raced out of bed and to my car, not really giving a care in the world about anything except getting home. Not having a clue as to what exactly is happening, just knowing I need to get home as fast as possible.

I should probably pause and give some back ground information. August 16, 2016 my dad, age 48, was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer due to 35 years of smoking cigarettes. A few years before this diagnosis he was told by his doctor that there were some signs of this disease but if he stops now, he has a better chance. He never stopped. In August he was told he could start treatment as soon as possible but things did not turn out as planned. The cancer kept spreading and it was simply out of control. A little while later and after many trips to and from the hospital we were then told he has just 2 weeks to live. The night of September 17th when we got the news, I slept over at a friends house.

After what seemed like the longest drive ever, I arrived home. My mom was waiting in the driveway for me and we both jumped in the car and she just started driving. When we got to the facility my dad was at, I saw a lot of my family there as well as more on the way. By the way, none of what was going on registered in my head for the longest time so I was just so numb this whole time. We waited until a nurse came in and explained everything which then followed with many tears, emotions flooding the room, many prayers, many hugs, and many goodbyes. And that was it...

Here I am just about 2 years later writing this. My heart racing, my mind going 100 mph, and me contemplating on even posting this or not. It is still so extremely hard talking about this and it forever will be. If you have lost a parent, you know the daily struggles it brings to you even after 2 years. I wanted to share a piece of my story for all of y'all out there who may not be ready to share yours. So I started with mine.