I think if my father could've been a mother, he would have been.

Mother

Sometimes I hear my mother in my self, in my actions. Sometimes I hear my mother in my voice.
Her playful way of talking to the dog, her playful way of talking to her children - these are my favorite memories of my mother. These are the things that made my father love my mother.

Father

Which made me think - what of my father do I have? His deep voice, no. But sometimes, when I'm telling a story with enthusiasm, with my arms waving above my head - I hear/see my father. I see his blue eyes light up, I see him watching us, watching to see if the story hit us deeply, I hear him turn up the volume.

I see my parents once a year and I try to make it a celebration. I try to celebrate us. And when I miss them, which I do, often, and when I hear them in me and see them, I know we are always together.