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Photo from Melissa’s birthday in 2013 in Frankenmuth
October 20, 1974 to October 20, 2021 — Melissa would be 47 years old today.
In some ways, that doesn’t seem possible to me simply because she was always so “young at heart.” And she never looked that old, either — I’ll never forget the time in the last couple of years when a teenager guessed Melissa was 25 and I was 50. (In fact, she was 10 months older than me, but I always looked older and grumpier, I guess.)
Melissa loved birthdays — she always said that her birthday lasted the entire month of October. And she always wanted me to stay awake until 11:59 PM on October 19th so I could wake her up (yes, she’d be asleep by then) to sing “Happy Birthday” to her as the clock turned to midnight. Then I’d get to repeat it again the next night, waking her up at 11:59 PM on October 20th so we could end her birthday with me singing “Happy Birthday” to her. I’ll do it again this year just to remember her, even though it won’t be the same.
Yes, there will be many sad moments and tears for me today as I remember this special woman and her special day that we celebrated together for 27 years (remember that we met in May 1993).
But I also have feelings of happiness and thankfulness on her behalf, that she’s now been migraine-free for 348 days. That’s truly a miracle for her, and I’m grateful.
My thanks to her parents, Gary and Nancy, for their part in her life, but above all, my thanks to God for such a wonderfully unique gift that He allowed in my life.
Happy Earthly Birthday in Heaven, Melissa. We love you and we miss you.
(The photo is from her birthday in 2013 at Zehnder’s of Frankenmuth. When I picked up Jake from school on Monday afternoon, guess what he asked if we could have for dinner on Mom’s birthday? Yep, food from Zehnder’s. That kid is pure gold.)
