In a small ceremony witnessed by immediate family and select closest friends, my daughter got married in a beachside rainforest in Australia, her new husband’s home country. Seven years after her father’s surprise cancer diagnosis, the space of his absence seemed ocean-sized amid the tiny crowd. Wrapped around her king protea, lisianthus, and leucadendron bouquet—native flowers symbolizing resilience, gratitude, loss—was her father’s favorite tie, pale turquoise that matched his eyes, her something blue. I walked her down the aisle. Her brother delivered the speech. And her father’s fierce love, clasped in her hands, eddied around our banks once more.
Helene Kiser is currently writing her second book/first memoir. Founder of the Butterfly Blueprint, she helps writers learn to self-edit. Find her at www.helenekiser.com. Instagram and X: @HeleneTheWriter