To all my students,

I would ask you all to be forgiving of me for the next few weeks as a grieve for my father.  I am deeply saddened by his death and am likely to tear up for no clear reason as the waves of grief overtake me from time to time.  If this happens, I may excuse myself to the hallway.  Please just carry on with the work you are doing.

Here are some things you may be curious about:

1. My dad was totally fit- or at least as fit as you can expect to be at the age of 76.
2. He was shoveling snow, slipped, hit his head, and had a stroke.
3. The stroke caused severe bleeding in his brain which caused a midline shift of his brain.
4. The phrase “midline shift” means that his brain was moved inside of his skull and pushed against the inside of the skull.  This force caused brain death.
5. I did make it to my dad’s bedside before he died, and I was able to say good bye- I do not think he was able to hear me at that time, but the doctors said they did not know for sure.

As an adult, I have been very close with my dad.  His death, and the subsequent closing of his estate, (emptying his house and property) is also, for me, the loss of the place in the USA that I considered my home.  My mom sold my childhood home about 15 years ago and has since moved into her husband’s home, but my dad had been living in his home since I was in high school.  This was the place that all of the family functions and gatherings would take place.  When I left the USA, I was really scary in that I, for the first time, do not have a home to go back to– there are just a bunch of places where my family lives.

In all of this, I am thankful for my siblings and the support we have been able to give each other.

Anyway, just so you know, I appreciate all of your messages and concern in this very difficult time.  If you want to see a few images of my dad and some of me as a very small child- check out the Instagram feed on the right- there are some real gems in there.

Regards,

MJ