Father's Day

After my experience with viral encephalitis, I had many lasting side effects. One of the worst was a disrupted sleep schedule. Either I couldn't fall asleep, because as soon as I started to, I would panic and jolt awake, or I would wake up every hour or so throughout the entire night. I was tired all the time, and all I wanted to do was sleep. Waking up in the morning was tough too, as I felt like I could sleep the entire day. After a few weeks, things weren't changing. I was having trouble concentrating during the day, and I was becoming more and more panicked when I would fall asleep at night. With the whole ordeal, the middle of the night was when all the effects of the encephalitis had occurred. However, one night, things changed. I had trouble falling asleep as usual, but near morning, I had a dream. Now usually I don't remember much of my dreams, especially after I wake up for the day. But this dream was different. I was dreaming that I was with a bunch of family, celebrating some sort of holiday. As I was saying my goodbyes in the dream and hugging some family members, all of a sudden, my dad was standing in front of me. All my other family members in the dream are still alive, and nothing eventful was happening. But when my dad appeared, I received such a jolt and began seeing the dream in such clear detail. I was able to hug him, while I was holding back tears. It felt so real. In that moment, I felt a sense of calm wash over me, and the feeling that everything was going to be okay. I woke up from this dream in tears, and I still had the feeling that everything would be okay. On Father's day this year, I've been thinking back to that moment. Ever since that dream, I've been able to fall asleep a lot more easily, without the fear that I wouldn't be waking up in the morning. I miss my dad all the time, but moments like these allow me to still feel connected to him and keep him alive in my memories.