When ILD Came To Visit And Decided To Stay

_{It must have been around the time that daddy fought in the Vietnam War that ILD decided to make his first acquaintance. Daddy met momma right after saluting farewell to the war but ILD wasn't living nearby at the time. He came by from time to time, but he was disguised by looking like someone else they knew, so no one bothered to be alarmed. He used many disguises,actually; all very elaborate and cunning. ILD was a gifted, smart one. He would stick around a bit, then leave. He would come back later, and then leave. Sometimes he stayed a little longer, but he always left as quickly and quietly as he came.}

_{ILD was around when my little sisters were born too. He never missed a holiday, birthday, or special event. He must have had an electronic reminder of these events because of his punctuality and timely consideration. He never made a mess and took his things with him when he left.}

_{Daddy continued to play hard with his friend, ILD. They loved racketball and baseball. ILD was such a sports fanatic and athlete. But, he never stayed long, and would leave as quickly and quietly as he came.}

_{It seemed as daddy got older, ILD came to visit more to check on his friend. He even moved into the neighborood and attended daddy's church he pastored at. Good ole' ILD, never missed a beat and never missed an opportunity to share the special events in daddy's life.}

_{I can't recall the exact date last summer when ILD moved into daddy's house, must have been when people in a medical van began to show up with ILD's belongings. I don't think he ever asked daddy about moving in, or momma for that matter! Guess he knew that since daddy and him had been friends for so long that he would stick around permananently to help daddy out. What a generous guy ILD was!}

_{We didn't know ILD's name, truthfully, until probably March of this year. ILD always loved mystery and surprises, that rascal. But he had already changed the landscape of daddy's life forever. He even consumed every bit of space in their house and announced his presence on their front door with a cute, little flame on the sign. Did I mention ILD was artistic?}

_{ILD was also musical. He had beeping machines and well choreographed lights humming to the beats from some of his instruments. What an entertainer he was! It was a pity he didn't let us know about his natural gifts beforehand. Maybe we could have visited him and listened to his music from the comforts of his own home. But, we didn't realize his talents until he moved in last summer. What a shame!}

_{The odd thing about ILD was that he used to come and go quickly and quietly. He was never the center of attention, and he was never selfish. His visits never cost a lot, and he always took his belongings with him. Now it seemed ILD was everywhere. He was the subject of every conversation with or about daddy. He made a lot of noise. He strung his belongings everywhere and never cleaned up his mess. He had to follow daddy all over the place, even to the bathroom and shower. We could never be alone with daddy like we used to be. What used to be a friend was now a foe. What used to be a mystery was now a fallicy. He didn't mind letting everyone know who exactly he was. He even put his announcement in the car rearview window!}

_{Momma became embarrassed when people at Wal-Mart asked about ILD. He had stripped daddy of his identity, like identity theft. Daddy was now known as ILD. It wasn't like a new grandbaby or a new car. ILD was a menace and a burden. He made daddy pant and wheeze like a old, dying man.}

_{Ironic thing was that ILD was around for every special event, every holiday, and every anniversary in daddy's life. But, now daddy faced the realization that because of ILD, daddy wouldn't be around for all those events in the future. What a strange twist of fate, your friend keeping you from seeing those things and being a part of our family's future generations!}

_{There will come a day, I know, that ILD will move his belongings out of daddy's house. They will compile themselves in the medical van again. ILD will go meet a new friend and move his belongings into their house. Daddy's house will be empty once again. As the medical van hauls off ILD's belongings, another van will carry off daddy, and the two friends will part ways forever. Daddy will not need ILD where he is going. He will have a new Friend, a Friend who walked beside daddy and ILD all these years.}

_{For now, as I write this, I will have to contend that ILD and daddy are inseperable and you can't have one without the other. I will continue to visit daddy faithfully and listen to ILD's rythymic music and gaze upon his art renderings. For this I know, ILD wasn't always my daddy's friend. He wasn't always the first thing you saw when you layed eyes on my daddy. Daddy was the guy that changed diapers, cleaned our house, cooked omelettes on Saturday morning, insisted on super clean movies to watch on Friday nights, and screened all of the dates. ILD never defined who my daddy was.}

To learn more about ILD, please visit the links below.