Commemorative Speech Manuscript

Viliana Apollon

Comm1212

Commemorative Speech

The Father I Never Knew But Hope You Would Be

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming.

We are here today to say goodbye and to celebrate the life of a son, a brother, a husband, and a father.

My father, Voltaire Apollon, was born in the summer of 1969. His mother thought that he was going to be a girl, so the first clothes he ever worn was a pink onesie. To this day, my aunt does not forget that; she would bring out pictures, though in black in white, to try to explain the story to anyone who dare to ask about her eldest brother. My father was the eldest of five siblings, with only one sister. My mother always jokes that it is his fault that I only have one sister, but have five brothers.

He lived a long, joyful, life. To him, today I say….

Dad, I miss you. I miss you like the earth misses the rain after a dry summer. You have been gone for over ten years now; I want you to know that you are dearly missed. I am sorry it has taking me so long to say goodbye. I wanted to hold on to your compassion, and your love for life.  

I wanted to hold on to your compassion; you left for the war, knowing your chances of coming back was slim to none. I am sorry my seven year old self could not grasp the fact that she may never see her father again.  Your compassion for others has given me the strength to continue without you for the past years. Dad, guess what? I made it through high school. During those years, everywhere I looked you were there with me; through teachers, such as Ms. Reed. Who offered to me her precious time to help me not only learn the new language of this foreign country that I found myself in, but treated me like the precious daughter she never had. She would stay after school with me, long after hours to listen to me read out loud. As I would struggle to sound out foreign words, she would make faces so that my tongue would mimicked her action. After our lessons, she would drop me at home because she did not like the idea of me taking the bus home alone.   You were there with me, because as I crossed the stage to receive my high school diploma, I made eye contact with her across the room; she smiled like the sun shine on the brightest day of the year and mouthed” I am SO proud of you”.  In those moment, I am reminded of your compassion, and I felt your embrace in my heart.  You were there.

Papa, tu me manques comme la terre manques la puie apres  un ete sec.   

Dad, I miss you like the earth thirst for the rain after the a drought

I wanted to hold on to your optimistic view on life. Remember your favorite phrase? “Look on the bright side”. To you, every situation has a bright side. As I walked in to the hallway of Guy 300 of Northwest University a year later than I was wanted too, I bumped into someone, a girl named Jenny, we both apologized at the same time, of course. She looked at me and asked, “What room are you in?”, and after that we became friends. Couples of weeks later, as Jenny and I hiked up to Twin Falls, our first hike together, I told her my story.

I was accepted to Northwest University on February of 2011. I attempted suicide on April of 2011 due to being sexually assaulted by someone I cared about. A week later, after the trip from the hospital, I had a meeting with the people in charge of student development at Northwest University. About two weeks later, I received the most devastating news, in my perspective at that time; I received a letter advising that I must deferred my dream of pursuing an education to focus on my wellbeing by going to therapy.

After I was done, telling her my story.  Guess what she says, Dad? “Look at the bright side. We would not have been friends if you had come last year”. “I was still a senior in high school as I recall. What would you have done without me?” She joked.

You were there with as I made the choice to live life abundantly.

Papá te extraño como la tierra echa de menos la lluvia después de un verano seco.

Dad, I love and miss you. You will always be with me with every step I take toward a joyful, meaningful, life. You will always, always, be there.