Today is my Father's Birthday who I affectionately call Papa (PawPaw). My Papa is currently serving prison time to be released in 2025. I've touched a number of subjects here on this blog but never this one, it's still a tough pill to swallow. See, the thing is my Father has always been in my life, just not physically. When I was 5 he went away for 10 years, came home when I was 15 and returned to prison when I was 20. I know sounds horrible, right? But, I wish I could paint the picture that I see of my Dad, I don't see a criminal. He's like my hero, and not because of any crime he has committed but because he has always loved me. My Dad is one of the most kind and loving people that I have ever met, he honestly was just dealt a bad hand from the beginning. When I was younger I had this pink pillow where I would just cry when I missed him, it was my crying pillow. Lol! (Clearly, I was always very dramatic) When I became and adult and had my daughter Farah, I needed my Father more than ever. Losing a child is one thing but not having your Father there with you made it sting just a little more. My Father loved Farah, and was so excited to be a Grandfather, actually that's all he talks about now. He can't wait to come home to Grandkids. I'm sharing my story because so many other kids have the same story and they are just overlooked, or when you say your Father is in jail people immediately think he's a menace to society and a horrible person. But, so many men in the system are great men and amazing fathers who just made poor choices. From behind bars my Father has been there for me as much as he could.

He keeps up with my life, is always asking for me to send him pictures and he's just a regular cool guy who just happens to be serving time. I have shared information about Angel Tree, the program that provides Christmas gifts for kids who currently have a parent in prison. As a child, I was an Angel Tree recipient and I used to think wow, how is my Dad getting me these gifts?!! Haha! I didn't realize that it was volunteers like you and I stepping in to  help, I just knew my Father had put me on some list to make sure that I had a Merry Christmas, and me smiling was always important to him. I encourage you to join Angel Tree and their efforts, it's not just about the gift, but it shows the child that your parent still loves and thinks about you, even from behind those bars, there is still lots of love.