After a long illness (cancer) my father passed away this past Friday. As with most deaths from cancer it's a blessing in the end as the pain was horrible for him. He was as flawed and human as any man and I loved him for it.

In the above photo I'm the little fellow in the front with the white t-shirt. My brother, Joel died nearly 22 years ago, my mother passed 8 years ago (also from cancer) so that leaves me with an immediate family of me and my son.

If you have someone you love; a parent, a sibling, spouse, a great friend don't forget to give them a kiss or hug and let them know just how you feel. My dad and I did it on a regular basis and it made it much easier to say goodbye.