January 26, 1948 – January 11, 2025
At some point in my life, I read about the dash on headstones between when someone is born and when they die. As I sat with my dad as he moved closer and closer to Heaven, I thought a lot about his dash.
My dad’s dash was 76 years long. He was the oldest of six children, married to my mom for 53 years, parented my brother and me into adulthood, and prayed faithfully for us every step of the way. He saw us both get married and got to make priceless memories with his grandchildren.
His battle against Parkinson’s Disease was 15 years long, and goodness, did he battle. He literally refused to stop moving, which led to us seeing an engineering side of him we never knew existed. He made things to make his life with Parkinson’s as functional as possible—from his rolling set of stairs that enabled him to get up to the hayloft to dismantling an electric scooter while keeping the frame and control stick. He essentially turned it into a scooter-truck so he could haul things to and from his projects. Oh, and during this time, he also completely dismantled and fully restored the classic tractor he was taught to drive as a child.
Dad’s dash saw him enjoy his love of farming and livestock for over 20 years. He then transitioned into being a plumber and an extremely dependable employee. He and Mom got to enjoy his hobby of riding Honda Gold Wing motorcycles. They were able to travel on their motorcycle across much of the United States, visiting 26 different states. I am so thankful they did not wait until retirement to do these things because Parkinson’s forced retirement upon my dad, and it was anything but typical and restful.
Through this journey, my mom said my dad never complained and always, always said, “thank you.” And he definitely never wavered in his faith. I found what is pictured below on my dad’s desk. If anything sums up my dad’s dash, it is this… Lord Glorify Yourself In Me At My Expense.
–Written by Rachel (Peters) Day