I just wanted you to see it.

For a long time I looked at the photograph.

I’d spent my childhood hoping Dad would stand beside me at milestones without being persuaded to put somebody else first.

Now I was beginning to realize that there would be new milestones.

Not replacements for the ones he’d missed, but opportunities for him to become more dependable in the present.

I sent back a note saying the bench looked beautiful and that I’d stop by after our trip.

Then I put the phone away.