Dad's Memorial Service

We held a Memorial Service for my Dad on Monday July 20th at my sister's house in her backyard to honor him and his life. We planned every last detail 'Mike Style'.....simple. We had a short service to honor his recent reconnection with God. Instead of a moment of silence we had a moment of song and played his and Sonia's song. My brother read the Serenity prayer which had given my Dad so much comfort in the last 5 months. Athzi read a beautiful poem she had written. My sister shared one of her favorite life lessons from Dad. Even Eli took a turn with the mic telling everyone that he knows "all about God". All 5 Grandkids made him a picture which we put into balloons so they could be sent to heaven. Before they released the balloons Grant read aloud what each child had written. After the service everyone ate, drank and told Mike stories. Inside we had DVD slideshow of his life playing....Josh put together 24 minutes of pictures and music. 

Even with our pain still so raw we were able to laugh and remember the man my Dad was. He will be forever loved and missed. His life and death have taught me so much. I will hold close to my heart all of those lessons and cherish all my memories. I love you Dad.

Serenity Prayer:

God, grant me
the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference. 

Eli and Katelynn's Letters to Heaven:

Papa Mike,
I love him so much.
I like him so much.
I love him because I hope he has fun at heaven.
I know that he will have fun at heaven.
I love him to make a picture for him.
I love you.
Love,
Eli

Papa Mike,
I'm so sorry that you bonked your motorcycle.
I know Grant loves Papa Mike and Lindsey and Erin and me and Eli.
I love you and I'm so sorry.
I know you will love your balloon.
I love you.
Love,
Katelynn 

Athzi's Poem:

one little tear
it was a fear
to lose a loved one
to stop all the fun

now he's gone forever
i'm not gonna lie, it's not gonna get better
it's gonna be sad
and for a long time we are gonna feel bad

but mike strong
didn't want things to feel like they were going wrong
i'm sure he wants to tell us
not to fuss

that he has it better
and will love us forever
that he is now in a place
with a smile on his face

just waiting for our smile
for us to walk a happy little mile
to remember but not cry
to be honest never lie

to remember all the moments
to recall important comments
to share stories together
to smile no matter what the weather

so let's stop those tears
let's face our fears
just celebrate his time
daddy promised things would be fine