So here's the short of it,
So today was the first day of the ordinary days that will come in the weeks, months, and years ahead.

And here's the long

Today seems somehow like a reflection of a day, not really a day - almost like our puppy's first glimpse of herself in the mirror - it looks real, and maybe it is, but there's something strange about it - something not quite right. Dad's chair is right there in the same spot, and even though he hasn't sat in it for months, there was some far hope that he might sit there again. Today there's no question.  At lunch Steve offered the prayer before the meal - something he's really good at, but today it punctuated that we won't hear one of Gene's before meal prayers again. 

I know that it will be a year of firsts.  The first time I will  have a birthday without a card and flowers from my Mom and Dad.  The first Thanksgiving, and on and on.  I suppose that's a part of getting through it - I suppose that's how the first steps are, figuring out how to keep finding the joyful moments in life. I'll look to Dad's example for how to do that.  One thing is for sure, he enjoyed his life.  I inherit the legacy of a man who chose to see the good whenever he could, and who spent most of his life making the world a better place in one way or another.  I know that I'll try every day for the rest of my life to live up to that legacy.

Today I am extraordinarily grateful that I am Gene Howard's daughter.