Hello Readers,
Welcome back to JournalBackpack.
Its been at least 6 months since I have logged into this site, checked messages or even had the slightest interest to do so. Why? I experienced the first ever major loss in my life, 6 months ago. Sadly, my 84 year old Father passed away in the comfort of his home after loosing the fight against Parkinson’s disease.
Grieving was something new for me. I found the sadness and tears that I tried to keep to the privacy of long car journeys and nights in alone, to be comforting and a reaction that seemed both predictable and “Normal”. The other part of grief is much more confusing as it masks and interweaves itself into regular everyday life that only appears as a weight on your shoulders that you cannot see but you can definitely feel. I shifted into a parallel universe where all of a sudden my outlook and reactions in life demonstrated elements of change. Immediately, life started to gain a different meaning and the transition has been confusing. I appreciate the rocks in my life such as family, my amazing partner and best friends who gave me the foundation I needed to keep me strong whilst going through this journey.
Going back to when I started travelling alone, I found myself in so many crazy yet wonderful situations that over the course of time changed me. My mind started to open and a curiosity to learn about the world, its history, its pain and its beauty became my main focus in life. Now after losing Dad, I find myself learning about life in a new way, seeing the importance of family, friends, relationships and living out my dreams, not only by jumping on a plane, but also by planting secure roots at home.
Due to this shift in my mindset, I feel that I am ready to embrace the world of blogging once more– I still love to travel, I still love to take interesting photographs, I’m still curious about the world and I still want to share these things with you.
Dad was an inspirational traveller. He worked extremely hard which allowed him to visit many countries such as Egypt, West Africa, lots of Europe, South America, USA, Caribbean and Sri Lanka. He always showed interest in my trips and showed encouragement even when my choice of travel was somewhere deemed as unsafe. Dad also had a curious yet open mind about the world and did not even let a wheelchair stop him from travelling.
As today is Father’s Day, I wanted to dedicate this post to my Dad who I dearly miss. It’s a reminder that everyday is valuable, and we have to live life to its fullest today. So, its time to bounce back to being the adventurous and free spirit, my dad knew me as. Loosing my dad has taught me the importance of life and how short our time is to leave behind a good legacy…and the only way to achieve it is through love, forgiveness and kindness.
Loosing my dad has taught me the importance of life and how short our time is to leave behind a good legacy…and the only way to achieve it is through love, forgiveness and kindness.
With Love xx
John James
January 25th 1932- December 9th, 2016
