Dear Dad,

Do you at least remember my birthday? Or does your new wife have to remind you? Do you remember my middle name? Probably not. I’ll never forget yours.

At my prom, when it was time for the father daughter dance, I wanted to get it over with. In ten years from now, at my wedding, I’ll be walking down the aisle and you won’t be the one walking next to me. It kills me to think that you won’t be a grandfather because you won’t know when I have my first child. I’m sorry that you didn’t love me for the past 18 years of my life. I hate that you felt the need to tell my mother that I had failed you. 

So, this visit is my last attempt. When I come visit you this summer, as a surprise, don’t expect the running hug that I gave you as a child, and in return, I won’t expect you to say “I love you” when I get back on the plane.

Your only daughter, age 18