This blog post is going to be more personal than quilting. I have shared my mom's story a little here in previous posts. We lost her to cancer 2 years ago and thou we didn't have a traditional mother/daughter relationship I loved her very much and watching her die was not an easy experience. We just celebrated Father's day a few days ago and it got me thinking about my Dad. We lost him suddenly in November of 2021. I want to share our story with you. I haven't shared this with too many people but I want everyone to know about him and how special he was to me.
I think this might be the last photo we took together.
When I was 5 months old my Dad came into my life and he never looked back. He is not my biological Father but he never made me feel like I was anything less than his little girl. He didn't have to take on this responsibility especially since he was only 23 years old at the time but he did without hesitation. He was my biggest cheerleader and supporter. When I was little I remember him always saying to me "Jody you should be a lawyer cause you argue everything" or " Jody you will be president someday cause you are too smart for your own good". At the time I was the only girl among 2 brothers and I wanted to make sure I had my Daddy time so I watched football, wrestling anything that meant I could be with him. He would tear down the world to try and keep his kids safe and we felt that.
Our lives were complicated and not always pretty. It seemed like it was always twisting and turning but I always knew in my heart he loved me and my siblings.
Our biggest challenge came when I was 15 and I found out that he wasn't my biological father. I was devastated and felt like my world was turned upside down. I was so angry and hurt for the secrecy and could not understand why this was happening. All kinds of questions came up. How was I going to explain this? What about my brothers? It also answered allot of questions. Like why my lase name was Silva and my dad and brothers names were Leonardo. The defensive comments when someone would ask questions about it. Now it all made sense. I had all kinds of fears but the biggest of all was would he stop loving me. He never did and if anything he tried harder to let me know how much he loved me. I loved him so much for loving me even when others didn't think he should.
My Dad is Harry Leonardo Sr. (Leonardo means Brave) and he was the most caring, loving man I know. He was so brave and would fight for anyone he loved. When he was in the hospital before he passed I said to him, "Daddy, Thank you for choosing me. Because you had the courage to love a little girl unconditionally I am the women I am today." I really hope he heard me and knows how much I love and miss him terrible.
My mom and dad shaped me into this strong, independent women. I am determine to always be better and fight for what I want and I got this from them. I write this story because I want to honor that and acknowledge through hard times we can always be better and do better. It is what makes me a better mom and person. It's the sole reason I started this business and work everyday to bring quality products to you. I am excited for what the future has in store for me and to have them looking down on me with pride. I love you Mom and Dad.
Thank for sticking through this and I am excited to bring you some new patterns and exciting announcements next month.
Until next time,
Jody
Purple Daisy Quilt Designs