A Eulogy to Bob Cook

There were so many of you who wanted to be there for Dad’s memorial today; but time and distance made it understandably tough. I thought I’d get you the adapted notes of my eulogy for him. Thanks so much for your love and support!

First Birthday Apart…

There are totems and touchstones of my dad everywhere that make me smile. But we are at a big milestone that is making the heaviness return just a bit. It’s a mix of sorrow and gratitude with which I step into his first birthday that I can’t celebrate with him.

Letting Go and Clearing the Canvas

From the moment we accepted the offer on the farm to the July morning we drove away, there was a truly insane amount of work to do. But what does it look like to do the even larger emotional work of actually letting go?

The Work

We had the buyer, but there was still a ton of work to do – practically and emotionally. Here’s some insight on that journey…

The “Why”

Why the hell would you sell the farm?
I can only speak for myself in answer to that question – even though this was a family decision. And as I reflected over the last season, I was a little surprised to discover that it was years in the making.

Cry

So let me put it out there right from the beginning: I did a lot of crying this summer. The reasons for that will unfold over the next few posts as I tell the story of a real inflection point in the life of our family.