that you hate your job; hell, I know you hate being an accountant! Your mother pushed you to do that, too, but you don’t have to stay with it. You can be anything that you want, Gina!” His eyes were pleading with her for understanding and if he had the strength, he’d reach out and shake her. “What is it that you want to be? Honestly.”
A wave of panic rose in her. No one had ever asked her that before and saying it out loud to anyone terrified her.
“Tell me, sweetheart. What would make you happy?” Tears flooded Arthur’s eyes as he begged his daughter to communicate with him the way he should have communicated with her years ago.
“I...,” she began hesitantly, “I want to paint.”
Arthur smiled. He felt ten years younger at his daughter’s honest admission. “You were always a talented artist, Gina. Why don’t you paint?”
“I don’t have the time,” she said sadly. “My job is pretty demanding and when I’m not working I have other commitments and there just aren’t enough hours in the day.”
He reached out for Gina’s hand and she grabbed onto him and held on tight. “Promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“While you are here, promise me that you’ll paint.”
She smiled at him with such love that her heart actually hurt. “I’m here to spend time with you, Dad, not paint.”
“There is nothing that would help me feel better than knowing that you were doing something that gave you joy. Besides, there is only so much we can sit here and talk about. As much as I want to spend every moment I can with you, there are going to be times when I’m just not up for company and so I want you to use that time doing what makes you happy. Promise?”
“I promise.”
****
Four hours later
,
Gina left the hospital. Her father had eaten a n early, light dinner and she had placed a gentle kiss on his forehead as he dozed off. With paper in hand, she made the drive to his home to gather the items that he had requested.
It felt weird to know that she was driving to the home that belonged to her father and yet it was a place she had never seen. Once she had moved to California, Arthur had always come to visit her; her mother had never allowed her to come back to North Carolina. Gina had always hated that; there had been friends that she would have liked to have seen and visited with over the years but she had been forced to do it simply by phone or emails. Arthur had sold their family home once his wife and daughter had left and Gina had no idea what kind of place he had moved to.
The house surprised Gina. It was a large Tudor set back on several acres of property. There were huge trees lining the long driveway and it was immaculately landscaped. She parked and climbed out of the car and her immediate impression was that this was a home that would be perfect for a family.
She used the keypad to enter the house and stepped into an enormous foyer. Immediately she kicked off her shoes because she didn’t want to mark up the beautiful hardwood floors. For the next several minutes she toured the main floor in wonder. There were windows all along the back of the house that showed a custom deck that looked out over a large expanse of green grass and then ultimately a lake. The kitchen was modern with all top of the line appliances.
Her father’s room was right off of the family room and she took out the piece of paper he had given her and found most of the items on the list with relative ease. His room was filled with dark furniture and it was a very masculine setting but she noticed that it really seemed to suit him. There were pictures of her scattered around the room from various stages of her life and it saddened her that this was how their relationship was; mostly a collection of photographs.
The last of the items he had said she’d find up on the second floor. Gina wondered why her father
A wave of panic rose in her. No one had ever asked her that before and saying it out loud to anyone terrified her.
“Tell me, sweetheart. What would make you happy?” Tears flooded Arthur’s eyes as he begged his daughter to communicate with him the way he should have communicated with her years ago.
“I...,” she began hesitantly, “I want to paint.”
Arthur smiled. He felt ten years younger at his daughter’s honest admission. “You were always a talented artist, Gina. Why don’t you paint?”
“I don’t have the time,” she said sadly. “My job is pretty demanding and when I’m not working I have other commitments and there just aren’t enough hours in the day.”
He reached out for Gina’s hand and she grabbed onto him and held on tight. “Promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“While you are here, promise me that you’ll paint.”
She smiled at him with such love that her heart actually hurt. “I’m here to spend time with you, Dad, not paint.”
“There is nothing that would help me feel better than knowing that you were doing something that gave you joy. Besides, there is only so much we can sit here and talk about. As much as I want to spend every moment I can with you, there are going to be times when I’m just not up for company and so I want you to use that time doing what makes you happy. Promise?”
“I promise.”
****
Four hours later
,
Gina left the hospital. Her father had eaten a n early, light dinner and she had placed a gentle kiss on his forehead as he dozed off. With paper in hand, she made the drive to his home to gather the items that he had requested.
It felt weird to know that she was driving to the home that belonged to her father and yet it was a place she had never seen. Once she had moved to California, Arthur had always come to visit her; her mother had never allowed her to come back to North Carolina. Gina had always hated that; there had been friends that she would have liked to have seen and visited with over the years but she had been forced to do it simply by phone or emails. Arthur had sold their family home once his wife and daughter had left and Gina had no idea what kind of place he had moved to.
The house surprised Gina. It was a large Tudor set back on several acres of property. There were huge trees lining the long driveway and it was immaculately landscaped. She parked and climbed out of the car and her immediate impression was that this was a home that would be perfect for a family.
She used the keypad to enter the house and stepped into an enormous foyer. Immediately she kicked off her shoes because she didn’t want to mark up the beautiful hardwood floors. For the next several minutes she toured the main floor in wonder. There were windows all along the back of the house that showed a custom deck that looked out over a large expanse of green grass and then ultimately a lake. The kitchen was modern with all top of the line appliances.
Her father’s room was right off of the family room and she took out the piece of paper he had given her and found most of the items on the list with relative ease. His room was filled with dark furniture and it was a very masculine setting but she noticed that it really seemed to suit him. There were pictures of her scattered around the room from various stages of her life and it saddened her that this was how their relationship was; mostly a collection of photographs.
The last of the items he had said she’d find up on the second floor. Gina wondered why her father
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