{"id":58107,"date":"2025-05-06T15:19:39","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:19:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/?p=58107"},"modified":"2025-05-06T15:19:39","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:19:39","slug":"i-was-ill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/?p=58107","title":{"rendered":"I WAS ILL."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mom and Dad might not openly express their feelings every day, but they show their love through odd, heartwarming, and often funny gestures. At times, it can be irritating \u2014 until one day, it clicks: the greatest gift in life is the quiet assurance that someone always has your back, and to them, you\u2019ll always come first, no matter what the world thinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 1<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Growing up with a single dad turned me into someone who can handle just about anything \u2014 changing bulbs, wiring, even rebuilding a car. Thanks to him, I developed a passion for vehicles and became a taxi driver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, when male passengers get in, they stare at me in disbelief. It\u2019s like they\u2019ve never seen a woman behind the wheel before. If only they knew I can out-fish them and do more push-ups than most of them! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 2<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At 17, I started feeling like the odd one out \u2014 short, red-haired, freckled, and constantly teased for it. I tried to hide it all with heavy makeup, dark hair dye, and baggy clothes. My dad noticed the change and gently asked why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eventually, I broke down and told him everything. He smiled and said, \u201cIrene, sure, you\u2019re short, redheaded, and your legs aren\u2019t supermodel-long. That\u2019s what makes you unique! You\u2019re beautiful \u2014 just like me.\u201d Somehow, those words helped me accept myself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 3<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Every time my dad came home, he\u2019d make up stories like, \u201cGuess who I saw on the way home? A huge rabbit under a streetlight!\u201d My mom and I would play along, puzzled. Then he\u2019d pull out a big chocolate bar and say, \u201cThe rabbit told me to give you this!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m 24 now, and I still fall for that silly rabbit tale like I\u2019m 6. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Story 4<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When my son was in 10th grade, I got a call from school saying he couldn\u2019t wear a ponytail. It looked great on him, but they claimed it broke the rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So my husband went to the meeting \u2014 with his long biker ponytail trailing down his back. After that, they never brought up my son\u2019s hair again. The school charter had no rule against ponytails, and our stance was clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 5<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We didn\u2019t have much money. One summer in 9th grade, I worked at a veggie depot to save up for school clothes. When I went to get the money from under the mattress \u2014 it was gone! I cried, thinking it was stolen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mom calmly said, \u201cI hid it so no one else would find it.\u201d That weekend, she took me to the market, and we bought new school clothes, a coat, and a bag. She even chipped in extra. I adore her for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 6<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

People often joke that firstborns are like the \u201cfirst pancake\u201d \u2014 always a bit of a mess. I once teased my mom and asked if I was her \u201cmessy pancake.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She looked at me and replied, \u201cI always heat the pan just right. Our first pancake is always perfect.\u201d That answer left no room for doubt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Story 7<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I was sick, and my boyfriend left to hang out with his friends \u2014 said I was sleeping anyway. I told my mom, and within an hour, Dad showed up with food and medicine. He asked about my boyfriend, and I told him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dad was stunned. \u201cJenny,\u201d he said, \u201cwe\u2019ve loved and supported you for 25 years. All that effort \u2014 for you to be with this kind of man?\u201d It made me stop and really think. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 8<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Today, my little brother turns 10. Like every year, Mom reads him a heartfelt birthday letter from Dad, full of love and pride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes this special is that our father passed away when my brother was just one. Knowing he didn\u2019t have long, Dad wrote birthday letters in advance. Each year, Mom takes one from the box and reads it. My brother beams like Dad\u2019s still here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are 8 letters left. After that, even Mom doesn\u2019t know what we\u2019ll do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Story 9<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I visited my parents feeling drained \u2014 everything in my life was falling apart. They immediately sensed something was off and tried to lift my spirits. Mom made cutlets and mashed potatoes, and Dad suggested we go sledding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He grabbed a neighbor\u2019s sled, and off we went. For those few hours, I forgot all my worries. It felt like being a kid again. In that moment, I knew \u2014 no matter how grown-up I am, I\u2019ll always be Daddy\u2019s little girl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Story 10<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Once, I returned home after being away for a few weeks. I called Mom and told her not to bother picking me up. But when I got off the bus and saw others welcomed by family, I suddenly felt so alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then I spotted her \u2014 Mom, who had taken time off work just to cook my favorite dishes and welcome her grown-up child home. In that moment, I felt like a little girl again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mom and Dad might not openly express their feelings every day, but they show their love through odd, heartwarming, and often funny gestures. At times, it can… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58107"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58107"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58112,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58107\/revisions\/58112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pulsperry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}