Ouch
So, since the last time I wrote anything regarding my nieces' dad, it already feels like so much has happened.
- He calls the girls at least every other day just to say hi and catch up with them on their lives.
- He sent them a care package with 3 framed photos of himself, his girlfriend and their cat along with some cute little gifts.
- He sent me $100 to get Kristen enrolled in a dance class because I told him she wanted to take lessons.
- The new Harry Potter book arrived via Amazon, for Katie, because I mentioned that she couldn't wait to get her hands on it.
- His girlfriend has been sending e-mails to the girls to try to get to know them, with really sweet questions like, "What is your favorite homemade food?" We videotaped the girls' answers and e-mailed it to them. They dug that.
- And today another care package - two huge boxes filled with 12 gifts each. One for every holiday and birthday he has missed with them over the last 4 years.
- The card he wrote Katie said:
"I miss you so much. I think about you everyday and I think about all the holidays and birthdays and fun times we missed. I know the gifts can't make up for that, but I want you to have something from my heart. My love was always there and I would pray every night for God to tell you that I loved you. It won't be very long and we will be a family again. Lots of love and hugs and kisses, Daddy."
I cannot imagine for the life of me how he survived these last four years, not knowing where these girls were. I cannot imagine what he's going through now that he's found them again. (Just in case I never mentioned it before, Mike didn't abandon these girls. My sister snatched them from him at a school Christmas pageant. Unfortunately, that tragedy coupled with losing his job the same month sent him into a downward spiral that he wasn't able to climb out of for nearly 2 years. By the time I got the girls, I was told that he was just as bad off as my sister, which is why I didn't even bother trying to find him initially. It wasn't until last Thanksgiving - the last time I saw my sister - when I realized that she was no longer an option for the girls' future, that I finally made the decision to try to find their father.)
And now, rembering the kind of dad he was, and obviously still is, I'm even more amazed at his success. I'm even more in awe of his recovery in the face of what had to be the worst pain imaginable.
As a mom, this situation brings me to tears constantly. With each new interaction between them and their dad, I'm humbled and touched...and my heart aches for them too.