My dad was a great man. I still miss him very much. My family doesn't talk about him too much though. I guess it's still too sad to talk about.

Before he died, we were a happy family. We were all close to one another. We would all play family games every couple weeks and we'd go camping.

Some nights we'd make a campfire in the yard and make smores and eat hot dogs. We haven't done any of that since he died. Life has been so different without him...

At one point I tried to bring our family back together again, but no one seemed to care. I just want to see us all happy and together again. Is that so much to ask for?

My mom's never been the best mom. Even before my dad passed she was always yelling. The house would turn into a war zone everytime dad would leave for work.

My brother and I were at each others throats and our mother would make us clean the house even if it wasn't our mess. She'd make us do everything while she sat on her bed playing games on her phone.

Life as a kid felt pretty bad at the time, but now a part of me wishes I could go back to that. Is was a bad time in our lives but at least we had dad to help us through it.

But then he died. Our mother slowly stopped yelling as much. She stopped making us do everything which is so much better, but I still miss him.

I miss our family game nights and I miss all those fun memories we made. Like the time my dad locked my friend in the car and he felt so bad about it.

And the time when we set up the pool in our backyard and we all splashed around in the water without a care. He's actually the one who taught me how to swim.

He wasn't a very social guy, much like me. He liked computers, baseball, Nascar racing, lighthouses and ships/boats. When he passed away I got to have his punching bag. I use it a lot to let out my frustration.

I miss him.

If you still have your family, cherish every moment with them. No matter how frustrating they can be, they're still your family. Tell them you love them and that you care about them.

Ask them about the things they like. Get to know them better than you did before. Make stupid jokes and laugh with them about it. Just make memories that you won't ever forget.

Because one day... you might not have the chance to.