Story Scrapbook Challenge - my Christmas loving dad
carollee

Story Scrapbook Challenge - my Christmas loving dad

I do hope you join us for this month's Story Scrapbook Challenge.
Details on the blog here: https://www.katiepertietdesigns.com/blog/story-scrapbook-challenge-fathers-2/

Today as I post this it's my dad's birthday and I wanted to tell a story of his love for Christmas.

Katie Pertiet Designs:

Seasons Finest Add-On Paper Pack
https://www.katiepertietdesigns.com/store/index.php/product/seasons-finest-add-on-paper-pack/

Clipped Stacks 04
https://www.katiepertietdesigns.com/store/index.php/product/clipped-stacks-04/

Studio KPD:

Readymade Layers: Christmas Borders 07
https://www.katiepertietdesigns.com/store/index.php/product/readymade-layers-christmas-borders-07/


Font: Times New Roman

Journalling:

This photo was taken too many years ago I couldn’t even hazard a guess, found in a shoebox of photographs, perhaps it was in the 80’s, even early 90’s, I can’t be sure. What I can be sure of was that Christmas was one of dad’s favourite times of the year. Well, that and football final season, especially if the Cats were playing. But I digress.

Dad loved Christmas, he loved having Trevor and I there, especially if we weren’t squabbling. We were only a small family, the four of us and of course grandma and grandpa when he was still with us. Even just with us he would drag that dining table into the loungeroom just so we could have Christmas lunch by the Christmas tree. Carols would be playing, and he loved sitting head of the table dining on a Christmas feast that mum and grandma would cook.

We always opened our presents after lunch and dad would play Santa and hand them out, each of us opening one by one so we could all admire what was inside the colourful wrapping paper. It would take forever to get through the presents but it was all part of the day, Wills style. These are the days where traditions hold firm and that we will always remember.

For a man who loved Christmas so so very much, the twinkly lights, the food, the spending time with family, the driving round the streets to see Christmas trees, what a cruel twist of fate was to befall him. Or was it a divine destiny on this day?

After progressively getting worse suffering from PSP over a number of years, it would be his beloved Christmas day that would finally claim him.

Christmas 2007 - dad had been in hospital after a fall at home for just on two weeks at that stage - he had decided a day or so after being admitted that he had had enough of the disease that had claimed his body, but not his mind. His very rational decision to deny a feeding tube was his way of taking back his life in a way I guess. He was now calling the shots.

Like every other day for those weeks in hospital we arrived on Christmas Day, dad had been moved to a different room, a more private room. Mum and I sat with him all day, Trevor came by for a while, but we stayed. The nurses gave mum and I cheese sandwiches for Christmas lunch, the last Christmas lunch we had together. Late in the afternoon dad took his last breath. On his beloved Christmas Day he left us. Now forever our Christmas angel and we are left with only memories of all the magic Christmasses we all spent together.

Media information

Category
Scrapbook Challenges
Added by
carollee
Date added
View count
153
Comment count
7
Rating
0.00 star(s) 0 ratings

Image metadata

Filename
2021 - Dad at Christmas in the 80s - web.jpg
File size
1.2 MB
Date taken
Sun, 14 November 2021 2:22 PM
Dimensions
1000px x 1000px

Share this media

Back
Top