Tag: my dad

One year ago today death showed its face again

Mia5 Comments
grave stone and candle
©Mia Salminen 2025

Today, it’s been a year since my Dad passed away. It was February 8, 2024, and about 11 o’clock when they called from the hospital to tell me he was no more. A year goes fast. I still have things to do, like going through his clothes. But life has moved on, and I have had other things on my mind. Sometimes, I wish he was here, but maybe it was for the best. You never know when death will show its face. It was good that some things were done before he died.

My Dad was a goldsmith who owned a business for 30 years. He continued even after he retired. It was one of his ways of doing something. He was a very good drawer, and he designed the jewellery he made. He made white golden diamond and zircon rings, pendants and earrings. He had a sales rep from whom he got orders from. But then the sales prep died, so Dad began to think about quitting the business. He decided to stop, and at the end of 2023, he sold the business premises. Ultimately, it was good it happened because fewer problems existed for me.

One of his last works was this ring (and a few earrings that were the same set). As the daughter of a goldsmith, I had access to jewellery without having to buy them. I have a lot of different kinds of jewellery, including yellow and white gold rings and pendants. If he tried new designs, I got to try them, so I might have pieces no one else has. It won’t get me rich if I sell them. No one else, for that matter. I haven’t used them for years because I’ve had rashes on my hands. I wore a necklace that my Dad made once last Christmas. For special occasions, I can wear them. Maybe I could begin to wear rings again every day as I did before.

golden ring on finger
©Mia Salminen 2024

No one is perfect, and my dad wasn’t either, but he was still my father, and I’m grateful for that. We didn’t agree on some things, but we got along great mostly. I hoped to have him around a little longer, but we spent a lot of quality time together, and that’s what matters.

Saying no to reunions

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Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

I have only been to one reunion, and I found it boring. I only went because my cousin did. Meeting a bunch of relatives who don’t even stay in touch and are strangers to me. We didn’t have any contact with any of the relatives besides my dad’s half-sister, my aunt. I got the message through my cousin, who got it through another relative that she died about two weeks ago. When my dad was in the hospital last year, and we tried to contact his sister, we didn’t. After he died, I tried again, but I didn’t get through. She had 3 adult kids, but none of them informed us about her. She was over 90, so it was only a matter of time before she would pass away. She never knew her brother had died. I didn’t have much luck regarding relatives, but I don’t see that as a bad thing. The only relative I keep in touch with somehow is my cousin, who I didn’t know I had about 6 years ago.

I was once invited to a school reunion, but I didn’t go even though I said I would. I don’t know why I should have gone, anyway. They weren’t nice to me in school, and I didn’t see any point in meeting people I don’t know anymore. I didn’t need to prove them anything, and I didn’t care about their lives. The reunion was decades ago, and if any of them would have another reunion, I still wouldn’t go. I say no to reunions of any kind. It would be different if it was with people I cared about. I prefer meeting new people and then moving on. It would be different if I met a singular person, but not in a reunion. It hasn’t happened and probably never will, either.

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Don’t think I’ll live that long

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What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?

Writing Daily Prompt

Quoting, Who Wants to Live Forever, A song by Queen. I don’t think I will have a long life. I think it has to do a lot with your genes and not with how healthy your life is. Some people die without having to do much, and then some people smoke and drink alcohol but still live a long life. None of my relatives have lived to their 90s. Except for my Dad’s half-sister, I don’t know if she’s still alive. Her kids don’t tell me anything. She was at least 91 years old in 2023.

My big sister died when she was 10 due to illness in 1983. My Dad’s mother passed away at 81 in 1989, and my mum’s mother died when she was 86 in 2003. She had a stroke and lived in a retirement home for 10 years before passing away. Mum died when she was 68 from cancer in 2013. Then, my Dad died at 79 of pancreatitis last year. On March 8, it will be a year. I don’t think I’ll have a very long life. I wouldn’t know what to do with the life I’ve been given. One thing is for sure: the world will be different in 30-35 years. You don’t know how much life you got because anything can happen. I wouldn’t want to live forever. There are enough problems in the present.

I think I don’t want to look further than what might happen this year or in a couple of months. I always try to be careful in anything I do. You can’t choose at what age you’re going to die. Your life can end in a blink of an eye, or you might be lucky enough to live a long life. Even if you’re careful, you can still meet bad luck, so you never know. You can only hope for a long life, but nothing is certain. Death will come no matter what. Life is for the living, and you should be able to live it the way you want. As long as it doesn’t disturb others, you might get a long life if you want it. Try to get along with others, and you will avoid many problems.