My dear children,
I am starting this page today, and I do not really know how to begin. So I will just begin.
I am writing this for you. Not for anyone else. One day you will be grown, and you will have questions I am no longer here to answer. You will wonder what I thought, what I believed, what I was afraid of, and what I learned along the way. This is where I will try to leave those answers for you.
I was not born in this country. I came here many years ago and built a life one small step at a time. There were seasons that were hard in ways I may never fully explain to you. But I want you to know this: every hard thing taught me something, and I am going to write those things down here, little by little, so they are not lost.
A few things I want you to know
Be kind, even when it is not returned. Kindness is not weakness. It is one of the strongest things a person can carry, and it costs you nothing.
You will make mistakes. I made so many. I am not going to hide them from you on these pages — I am going to tell you about them, because my mistakes are where I learned the most. I would rather you learn from mine than repeat them.
Work hard, but do not forget to rest and to love the people around you. The work will always be there. The people will not always be.
The things I am most proud of in my life are not the things I achieved. They are the people I loved, and the people who loved me back.
Why I am writing this down
Memory is a funny thing. I used to think I would always remember everything — the small moments, the lessons, the feelings. But time takes them quietly, a little at a time. So I am writing them here while I still have them clearly.
Think of this as my notebook, my binder, the place where I keep the things that matter. Come back to it whenever you need to. Some pages will make you smile. Some might make you cry. All of them are me, talking to you.
I love you more than any words on a screen could ever hold.
— Dad
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