Anniversaries

Hey everyone, I know it's been forever. As always... but I miss my daddy. February 24, 2013 made it 8 years since the last day I saw him. Yes, it was an anniversary. Anniversaries like this seem like they would be depressing, and yes they are... but you can either choose to think about how the person is gone OR you can choose to celebrate the person's life. I remember he dropped me off for my 7th grade field trip that morning and gave me a hug and a kiss good-bye. I'm truly thankful I got to say good-bye to him that morning. I got my daily hug and kiss good-bye that morning. Little did I know that would be my last ones from my daddy. I miss him so much and I wish he was here. I would trade everything I have just to hear his voice or see him one last time. Hell, I would give anything to hear him even yell at me at this point! I miss my dad more than anything. After 8 years, you would think it would get easier... but it doesn't. It never does, nor will it ever... not for me. I feel like, if anything, it gets harder because now I feel like I'm starting to forget things. I may be forgetting things, but I will never forget February 24, 2005. I remember leaving him that day, walking into school all happy. We went to Medieval Times and I had a blast that day. I do remember it being a blah, rainy day... and on our way home we were told to call our parents to let them know we were getting close to town. Well, I called my dad's cellphone first, but he didn't answer. I called again, still no answer. I thought that was weird, so I called his work phone. Once again I had the same result, he didn't answer. Then I called the house phone... of course, no answer. My friend Blake asked to borrow my phone so he could call his parents. While he called them I remember a state of panic rushing over me. I remember thinking: what if my dad forgot me? what if he is tied up at work in a meeting? what if he took a nap or met up with someone? this isn't like him, why isn't he answering? ...I then got my phone back from Blake and called again. Starting with the cellphone, then the work phone, and the house phone. No answer. I even attempted calling my dad's boss, she didn't answer either. Maybe he did forget, or he is just already at the school. Finally we get to the school, I look in the front parking lot for his truck, but no luck. It was no where to be seen. As we pulled around back I quickly scanned the parking lot again for my dad's truck. His little Nissan was no where to be seen. I remember a rush/wave/tsunami of panic coming over me. I felt like I was suffocating in panic. I tried not to show it, but I didn't know where my daddy was. This wasn't like him at all, he never forgot me, ever. As soon as I got off the bus, my mission was to find my daddy. So I could tell him about my day and see him and hug/kiss him and go have dinner with him so I could come back for band practice. I never got the chance to do any of that. My assistant principle brought me aside and into the guidance counselor's room. All I remember thinking was: no, this isn't right. I need to find my dad. As soon as I got into the room I looked to the right. There was my bestfriend's mom sitting on a bench. Her eyes were red and puffy from where she had been crying. I was then told that during my dad's lunch hour he had left work to get lunch and was killed in a car accident. He was hit by an 18-wheeler who jack-knifed right into his truck. My father was killed instantly, and I thank God for that. Thank God my daddy didn't have to suffer, but I miss him so much. I wish he was hear to talk to me, to tell me he was proud of me. I wish I could give him another hug and kiss. I wish I could see him grow old. He would be turning 59 this year and I wish he was here to celebrate it. I love him so much, but I'm thankful I knew him. Most people don't even get blessed with the chance to know their fathers, but I knew mine and he may be gone but his memories I have of him will keep him alive. I love you daddy. 

I believe in signs.

Evening ladies and gents,

That was so lame, but whatever… I attempted to spice it up. …Some. Haha! Anyways, like always I haven’t written a new post in a while but today something really got me. Here is a super short background story to this post: my dad and I loved shooting stars. I remember growing up and during meteor showers he would wake me up so we could sneak out, being careful to not wake up my mom, and watch all the shooting stars. Great memories, that’s what that is. Well, ever since he passed away back in 2005… and since I could drive, I have my moments when I like to ask my dad a really important question. I like to ask my dad if he’s proud of me and if I’m on the right track of what I should be doing with my life. The first time I looked up into the night sky and asked my dad those questions was after I had a date with my ex. I was praying I could have a sign that my dad was proud of me, if he approved of my ex, and if he was just simply happy with whom I had become. Within minutes of asking that question, I looked up into the sky and saw a shooting star. Now, I have always had a tendency not to believe things right away… and I’m sure my dad knew that… because as I questioned whether or not I had just seen the shooting star, another one shot across the sky. It was the most beautiful sign I could ever receive. At that moment, I quit questioning. I knew my daddy was proud of me; after all… he answered me the best way he knew how. Since then I haven’t questioned any signs. This may be cheesy but it means a lot to me, and it has happened a few times after that night as well. Like tonight! I was driving home tonight from my house to my aunt and uncle’s house and it was just one of those weeks where I had to ask. For some reason, I’ve been slightly down in the dumps… but hey! That’s life; sometimes it gets the best of us when we know it shouldn’t. Tonight as I looked up into the sky during my night drive home, I asked my dad: dad, are you proud of me? Am I who you would want me to be? Am I doing what I was meant to do with my life?  Honestly, I got bummed out. I didn’t see the shooting star tonight within minutes, and that was the first time that had happened since I started asking him that question. I know it had only been like the fourth time I asked, but I got use to seeing, what I thought, was his sign of approval. I cranked my music back up and tried to clear my mind, I was deeply troubled. As if my week hadn’t already thrown some curveballs at me. Now, my dad wasn’t always around when we lived with my mom, but I remember that he never let me down. NEVER. Even though he passed away almost 8 years ago, he still has yet to let me down. Within 7-10 minutes, I let out a huge sigh, looked into the sky and I saw my dad’s sign of approval. A beautiful, bright, clear, shooting star.

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker 

My daddy and I in Sweden. <3

Relationships with God.

Happy Sunday everyone!

For most of you guys, Sunday is a church day. I’m Catholic and I try to attend mostly on Saturdays… but if not I go on Sunday. I can PROUDLY say that since I have been in college the past three years, I have only missed mass three days. Once during my freshman year and I was home for Christmas break and it had been snowing, the second time was this past year, end of my sophomore year. We had gone up to the Basilica National Shrine up in Washington D.C, but we had gone to mass at noon that day which didn’t fulfill the weekend obligation… and the last time was this past summer when my sweet little Ponchita died. I was headed to mass in Goldsboro with my family on a Sunday morning when my roommate called and told me that our kitty wasn’t doing good, so I rushed back home and took her to the vet. She was so sick, and I tried my best to take care of her and get her the medications the doctors prescribed her… but there was nothing we could do and we ended up putting her to sleep. Those are the ONLY three times I have missed mass since I have been in college. Now… you might be reading this and thinking, “okay girl, what is the purpose of this?” …Well, my purpose of writing this is to make you think. Are you religious? Many a time people tell me,”God knows me and knows my intentions. I might not go to church but He knows me and we have our own unique relationship. That’s why I don’t feel like I have to go to church.” …Are you one of these people? I understand and I’m not judging you, if that’s how you feel, that’s how you feel. I am not going to change my opinions about you. What you do is your business. If we were friends and you thought like this, we will still be friends. I just wanted to preach my opinion on the matter. So here it goes:

THINK ABOUT THIS:

You have your friends right? The ones that will always be there for you no matter what? The ones that you have to see at least once a week, if not more. Those friends that mean the world to you because you love them and they love you… you know that you will always be there for them just like they will always be there for you? Well, think about this. What is God to you? God will ALWAYS be there for you, He loves you UNCONDITIONALLY and you mean the world to Him. Do you not love Him? Is He not always there for you? Just because you cannot see Him does not mean that He isn’t there. If you believe in Him then you KNOW He is there… Is He not like that friend? Do you not ask God for help, especially when you are in predicaments? So, why is it hard to go see Him once a week in His house? I don’t understand this… I take 15 hours of classes, weekly. I work 10 hours a week. I want to see my friends and my family… I make time to go out on dates, or to have time to relax. It doesn’t kill me to take one hour out of my hectic week to go see God in his house. I mean, if I can see my friends that may or may not always be there, then I can definitely go see God. The One who is and will always be there for me. God knows me and my intentions too, I am not perfect but I do make time out of my week to see Him in His house.

Think about it… do you have a healthy relationship with God… or are you using Him? …Is He like that bestfriend you have that you make time to see, or is He like that friend that you only use for favors?

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker

Baby Ponchita the night I rescued her and Kensington... and my first tattoo. <><

Life is stressful, yet beautiful.

Hi everyone!

Per norm, I’m apologizing for not being on here like I use to be. I really need to make a set schedule and follow through with it on things that I am going to do/want to do/need to do. I was just thinking back to my post on the 1st of this month. I can’t help but think that, that would have been a horrible last final note to leave the world if I would have died the next day when I wrecked. I’m not sure if anyone from my hometown really knows about my Blog except for a couple of people… but I know I want it to be fully known if anything does happen to me. I would have hated to leave on a “bitter” note. Honestly, I am so happy now. Yes, I get lonely and yes, I am super stressed but I am thankful I am still here and still able to feel all these emotions! Not sure what I want to talk about tonight. For starters, I have been so busy and completely stressed. I have had 4 Psychology exams in the past week, FOUR. It’s been crazy! On top of that I have been trying to work out, I’ve been working about 8-10 hours a week, dealing with the insurance about my car, trying to car shop, and everything. This past weekend, my grandma and aunt flew from El Paso, Texas to visit for my uncle’s surprise 60th birthday party and boy was he surprised! It was great seeing all my family, and having everyone come out. I am so blessed to be a part of such a huge loving family… and speaking of HUGE. My cousin, who is basically my sister, Chica, is having her baby bright and early in the morning! I’m so excited for my Goddaughter/niece/cousin to make her grand entrance to the world. I am so in love with life right now and all these blessings that I have been given. Also, I have been okay about Zack. I’m sure if I saw him maybe I would feel different, but as of now I am free.  Happy and free. I’m going to Sweden in December to see my mom and her family! I reapplied for Nursing school again, and they send out letters on the 15th of October so we will see how that goes! I’m so happy with my relationships with my family right now, they were close before my wreck and now they are even closer. I love it, and I love them. They’re all so great and supportive. Also, another bit of good news… I’m hanging out with a friend from work tomorrow night. It’ll be good to get to know someone new and to hang out. I’m pretty excited about all of this. Anyways, I decided I’m going to skip class tomorrow and drive to Raleigh to see my cousin and my Goddaughter! (They haven’t picked out a solid name yet, they have ideas but not a definite choice yet… hence me not saying her name) Goodnight everyone, hopefully I will Blog after I get home tomorrow. Just remember, God doesn’t give us more than we can handle. Life may be so stressful at times, but think positive… Life is beautiful!

Goodnight everyone,

Clair Kwahadi Parker

Kenzie and I sitting at the table... I swear she loves me.

Life as we know it.

Hey guys! So, I didn’t write yesterday… I had a nice relaxing day/night with my cousin Jeffrey. We went to see campaign, had dinner at Popeyes, came home watched movies and stayed up talking until 4 am. Anyways, today’s post will be short and sweet. It’s going to be about my dad since today was his birthday. He passed away while I was at a field trip in the 7th grade. The date was February 24, 2005… it was a rough day and it still is. Death isn’t an easy thing to grasp, especially if it;s someone you depend on for everything. I was 12 turning 13 when he passed away. He was 50 turning 51. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about him. I think about him all the time, I miss him so much. Sometimes, I wonder why he did lie to me about my life. I mean, I heard stories of possibly why he did, but I would love to be able to ask him. To get his side of the story instead of just assuming. I know he’s gone, so I know I will never get any of my questions answered and it sucks. That’s why honesty in a relationship is something I truly care about. I want my boyfriend to be 110% honest with me and be okay with it. Obviously Zack couldn’t cut it. The pressure was too much for him but I’m glad I found that out almost 2 years later rather than down the long road. I miss my dad, and yes I am upset about a lot of things. But I love him, I know he did everything with his best intentions (Zack often reminded me of that)… I just wish he was here to ask him more. I pray he had a great 58th birthday in Heaven. I don’t know if you guys have faced someone passing away, I’m sure you have, but I’m not sure you’ve also experienced someone in your immediate family passing away. It’s extremely difficult. Especially for a 12 year old who only had one parent and that was it. My world was crushed and completely changed. Anyways, death is hard. It’s clearly never easy. Especially if it is sudden and there were no signs of it happening. My dad’s death was sudden. We said our goodbyes in the morning when he dropped me off for my field trip and when I came back he wasn’t there. I never imagined this happening to me, no one does. He was gone. I just found his death certificate a couple of weeks ago actually. See, when my dad passed away they had advised me not to see him. I chose not to see his truck. My making those choices have greatly impacted my life though. I never fully knew what happened, I never fully will. But, I found his death certificate the other day and some online articles. I found out the name and age of the man who killed my father. He was exceeding a safe speed and charged with something else. He was driving a flatbed truck that had jack knifed and killed my father. My dad was supposedly on his way back to work after going home for lunch. His time of death was 1:12 pm… I was still watching the Medieval Times show when it happened. I was having a good time with friends. I didn’t know what happened, and knowing that I was having fun while he was suffering is awful. I read his death certificate and read the cause of his death. It was serious head trauma. I don’t know how long he suffered, or if he suffered at all, but I can only pray that it wasn’t bad. I pray that he didn’t suffer and I pray that he left this world with no pain at all. I miss him so much and I just pray for him all the time. It’s been hard not having him here. Knowing that he won’t be able to walk me down the aisle when I get married, he wasn’t here to see me graduate from high school, he won’t be here to see me graduate from college, he won’t be here to meet my grandkids, my family, my new friends, my next boyfriend. He won’t physically be here, but he will forever be in my heart and that is how he will live on. Remember, never leave someone angry and tell them you love them. Tomorrow is not promised and your life as you know it can change in the blink of an eye. Mine did.

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker

My daddy and I back in 1993 while we were visiting my mom’s family in Sweden.

My daddy, me, and my mom.

My tattoo: Death is not the end and life is forever.

My dad and I at my friend’s mom’s wedding… this is one of the last pictures we have together.

My dad and I after I won 1st place in a horse riding competition when I was like 6 or 7.

& my daddy trying to calm me down, haha. I miss that man. <3 we were so cute.

The interesting day of a cat’s life…

Hi guys! So, Zack picked out the title of this one today. We have been texting and well he helped me come up with this. More like I just asked him what I should write about and that is what he sent back. At first I was thinking “Eh, no. That’s silly…” but then I thought about it a little longer and it hit me! When I went to mass today the Deacon said the homily and it started out with him talking about taking care of the Priest’s cats while he was on his Mission Trip. Agnes and Lucy are their names. He said that everyday he went to take care of them he realized how much they depended on him. They would just wait for someone to come through that door and take care of them, everyday. They never knew what would happen that day, they didn’t know if someone would show up or if someone wouldn’t, they just had Faith that someone would. We should do this ourselves. Cats, dogs, babies, or anything dependent on someone… they have the most faith. They have faith that they will get fed and that they will get taken care of. They fully rely on us (well, the indoor pets), they fully rely on us to take care of them. Babies cannot take care of themselves, they too also fully rely on us. These creatures have Faith. They have confidence in us, that we will pull through for them. They trust us to take care of them. They display the true definition of having Faith. I don’t know about you guys, but I believe in God. I believe that He knows what is best for me and my future. I believe He has everything under control, and I believe I am following the path that He has made for me and wants me to follow. I have Faith in Him. I have confidence in God and what He is doing with my life… and yeah. I might think my life has been a little on the rough side, but I trust Him and the choices He made for my life. I have faith in Him. Well, it’s time for me to rest. It’s 1:49 in the morning, Zack and I are in deep conversation which may or may not be good, and I want to figure out what I’m doing Monday for my dad’s birthday. Can you believe he would have been 58 this year? I wish he was physically here with me to celebrate. Apparently he had loved Pineapple upside down cake so maybe I’ll make that after I go to mass. Goodnight everyone. Hug and kiss the people you love, and tell them you love them while they’re here. You never know when you may not see them again.

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker

...and yes. I did keep the heart by his name even though we've been broken up for a while.

Salon talk.

Hmmm... good morning. I guess I may as well start getting use to this since I keep writing this so late/early! I'm sitting in my old bedroom watching the Olympics with my cousin Jeffrey. It's good bonding time and he's definitely keeping me positive. So, as the title sorta hints to this, I got my hair cut today. The lady that cuts my hair is so sweet, she's cut it for quite a few years now. She had asked how I had been doing and asked about the vacation I was supposed to be on. I told her about how my aunt and uncle were in Texas but how I flew back to be here for my friend/ex. We ended up talking the whole time about how my relationship had ended, what had happened, the people involved, and all that sweet juicy stuff. It was very good to talk to her, to get that stuff off my chest, to get another person's point of view. However, when I was talking to her about Zack I started tearing up. She apologized for asking about him, but I told her I was okay with it. It was life, and life works in weird ways. Of course though, with me talking about him and tearing up about him, my hair stylist started slightly tearing up as well. She told me that she could really tell how much I cared about him, that it showed through the way I talked about him. I loved hearing that, I always wonder if I sound bitter or something, because I'm not. I'm glad we had our relationship, I'm glad he was my bestfriend. I hate how it ended, I truly do, but I'd rather be friends than nothing at all. He's a sweetheart. Anyways, I told her everything and I didn't even have to tell her how I felt... she could gather that from the way I talked about him. I don't have much to say, but I will leave you with this. My hair stylist did tell me some very cliche but very true words of wisdom, she said: If he is meant to be  yours, then he will be... and if not, then be thankful that he didn't get in the way of what is supposed to be yours. How true and how wise, what a good way to look at a situation like this. Weather you are a guy or a girl, that is the perfect way to think about it. So, as I said, I'm leaving you with that.

Remember: If he/she is meant to be yours then he/she will be... if not, then be thankful that he/she didn't get in the way of what is truly meant to be yours.

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker

My very handsome Valentine's Date for 2012... everyday with him was like Valentine's Day. <3

Look at us now.

Well, once again it’s 1 in the morning and I’m starting to write. I had this pulled up at 9, but I’m super ADD, I was texting, watching the Olympics and Jimmy Kimmel… now AFV, and well I’ve been on Facebook and looking at pictures. Today was August 7, 2012, last year it was a very happy joyous day. Zack and I had a cute date as we always did every month. My friends would “bash” the fact that we celebrated our anniversary every month, but I loved it and absolutely adored the idea. He was amazing and so loving. Simply the best and oh so cute. Well, today would have been our 1 year 11 month anniversary and I hated the thought of this day. However, at least he was the first and last person I was texting on this day. You never know where you will end up in the future. Zack always told me to live in the present, I should have listened. When you love in the present you don’t get hurt as much. Once you get the feeling that there will be a definite future, and it doesn’t happen, you get hurt. But what is life without hurt. I feel like if we didn’t get to experience some of the emotions that we do, then we aren’t truly living. I just got off the phone with my aunt, it’s about 320 am now… She’s three hours behind us. My aunt and uncle are in El Paso, Texas right now, which is where I would be but I chose to come home. I miss her a lot, she helps me more than she knows. A majority of our talks are about life and keeping faith. She knows how depressed I am, but she helps me so much. Back to the reason for this post… I mean look at Zack and I. Our year and eleven month anniversary, you would have never thought we’d be where we are now. I mean, look at us now. We went from friends, to bestfriends/boyfriend/girlfriend, to still bestfriends, to complete strangers… now we are just here. I mean, I still want to be bestfriends… I want to and I will be here as his friend. It is up to him to either be the same way or not or to work up to it or not. Have you ever listened to Johnny Cash’s song Hurt?  That song, the first time I heard it, I thought of Zack. Especially our situation and the line: What have I become, my sweetest friend. Everyone I know, goes away in the end.” That song is so true, to a T. It’s the story of my life… and I am so incredibly sorry for how I was with Zack. I know nothing I do or say can get him back, but I’m not accepting that. I just wish I could get my bestfriend back… A year ago I would have never imagined I would be going through this, that him and I would be going through this. However what I do know right now is that I am here for him if he wants or needs me, I always will be, and I know that he just needs a friend. I’m not trying to fight for him back, me flying back wasn’t my attempt to come back and win him over. No, it was for me to be a friend here for him during this time. I am his friend, and I will be here for him. That’s what good friends do and I will never be anything less than a good friend to anyone. I also do know that I need to stop worrying. Once you worry about things, you lose faith. I mean, think about it… if you are worrying about something then you clearly are not letting God handle it. Is it that I don’t trust Him with my problems? No, it’s just that I’m human and I worry… but I shouldn’t and I will work on that. I’m going to F.R.O.G… Fully Rely On God. Well, I’m going to try my hardest. Now that it is 4 am I think it is time for me to go to bed but I will leave you guys with this: even though I never expected Zack and I to end up like this, I still love him and wish nothing but the best for him. I mean, you never just stop caring or loving someone… not that easy or ever. If you do, then you never truly cared or loved that person in the first place. 

Yours truly,

Clair Kwahadi Parker