The video continued through old performances, backstage jokes, and rehearsal disasters. In one clip, Dad attempted to jump off a speaker and landed flat on his backside. In another, the bassist knocked over an entire tray of drinks.
I’d never seen Dad like that.
He was loud, funny, carefree, and full of life. Nothing like the quiet, distant man who barely spoke to me over breakfast.
Then the footage stopped.
The screen went black for a few seconds before another image appeared.
Dad was sitting in the very studio where I stood. He looked thin and exhausted. Cancer had taken most of his hair, and his face seemed older than I remembered.
But his eyes were unmistakably his.
“Hey, son.”
My breath caught.
“I’ve never been good at this stuff,” he began. “Talking about feelings. You know that better than anybody.”
He tried to smile, but it didn’t last.
