04/18/2026
Russ Reckewey
July 28, 1955 to March 12, 2026
My dad died last month, while on his annual 6 month 'winter' in California. I've talked about it a lot in stories, but needed to put him on my main grid before getting back to work and pretending everything is normal.
I didn't expect to lose my momat 25, and I didn't expect to lose my dad at 32. My mom died after a 6 month battle with a brain tumor which was sudden onset, a quick decline, but we had time to grapple with it. My dad, one night I went to bed with one parent left, and woke up at 2 am to phone calls telling me my dad had his first heart attack and they couldn't get him back.
My parents taught me the best parts of myself. We fought and bickered, like any family who raised a stubborn and strong willed daughter 🙃 , but they taught me to be kind, to be generous, to go for my dreams, to not forget how to have fun even when you're a grown adult with responsibilities. They taught me to be a good person. To be welcoming and supportive of everyone. To help anyone you can.
I know I have all my friends, internet and irl all around me, along with extended family. But I can't help but to constantly think of one day, when I was probabaly in late high school or early college, and my mom was probabaly jusy having a rough day, and was emotional over the realization that she was an orphan, technically, even though her parents had been gone for 15-20 years at that point. I have that "I'm an orphan" thought in my head frequently lately, just as a sort of "huh that's weird" fact.
I'm rambling, and making this about me lol, but it's just really weird. Im an only child, and I really thought I had more time with my parents. Once my mom passed in 2019, I thought I had more time with my dad.
My mom was 62. My dad was 70. Both were far too young for their honestly excellent health. I don't know what else to do really other than be comforted by the fact that they felt they would be together again in heaven or whatever afterlife they believed in
