At the edge of the high dive

This moment feels like it does when you get to the edge of the high diving board, and you have to jump.

I was never one to go back down the ladder, once I am there, I am going. As you walk and have diving board all around you think... what if I lose my balance.

The trick is to not look down, don't consider what could go wrong. Take a deep deep breath, and feel the wonder of being alive. Your ears hear, your skin feels the breeze. The peril is what make your senses keen, and your mind focus.

I heard that Alfred Hitchcock said he wanted people to feel the delight that comes when you wake up from a nightmare.

I know that my daughter will come home in 10 months, and that we will be filled with Joy. I know that she will have a depth, and sense of perspective that they don't sell at the mall. I am willing to be afraid, and sad, and lonely because I know that the gifts will last a lifetime.

My daughter is precious to me (of course she is.) I wonder why we always have to surrender the things we love deeply. It seems like a real universal truth of life.

I will use this blog to cronicle what Sabrina is missing, and maybe a future Rotary student or parent will trip across it and find it comforting.

Gods Speed Sabrina. I trust that you will have the hand of God on your shoulder and the goodwill of your host family to sustain you. Nothing you will ever treasure comes easy. This experience promises to be a very big challenge for you. You will experience lonliness, frustration, and discomfort in 1,000 forms. These memories are the pearls you will treasure most when you are on the other side of this experience.

I love you, and am at your call whenever you need me.

Love,


Your Dad