08/05/2026
✨Death Anniversaries✨
Last month we marked the tenth anniversary of my dad's passing.
In honor of this milestone, we chose to dedicate a star in his name through Star Registration
It felt especially meaningful this year, as some of our most cherished memories were camping together as a family, sitting around a bonfire and looking up at the night sky, searching for constellations. 🌟
While he is no longer with us, we continue to honor him by cooking his famous meal and sharing it together that evening. It was one of his famous recipes he perfected in the kitchen that we only make to mark special festivities and celebrations.
We lit candles, one for each anniversary year, and acknowledged a story or memory for each candle we lit. 🕯
The beauty of this ritual is that everyone remembers different stories, and in sharing, more stories were brought to the surface.
We continued to share stories as they arose all weekend, long after the ritual was complete, which was a lovely outcome that we had not originally planned for but embraced wholeheartedly.
We also invited close friends and family members to share a word, memory, story, or saying that resonated with them from dad.
We read these shared messages from loved ones to help us feel a sense of connection and closeness to dad.
These rituals created space for grief and gratitude to coexist as we held both joy and sadness as we reminisced on all of our stories. ❤
Nicole ✨
XOXO
