I got the dreaded “mailbox is full” notification yesterday morning. Between Spring Break and Holy Week, I had let some phone messages pile up and was slowly working my way through those voicemails.
In an attempt to get back on track, I scrolled through. my voicemails to see if there were any I could automatically delete, but I stopped on one. I already knew what it was. It was a voicemail my dad had left me five years ago singing me happy birthday. I’m not sure what I was doing when he called or why I missed his call, but I know that five years ago the thought of celebrating a birthday without his call hadn’t occurred to me.
I took a minute and listened to the joy in his voice and savored remembering all the birthdays I had gotten to celebrate with him. Dad loved to celebrate and was infamous for his dining room birthday decorations made from paper plates, crayons, and multi-color, mismatched ballons. I don’t have the decorations anymore, but I’m so glad I have his voice and his joy saved not only in my voicemails, but in my heart.