Hello, my name is Marisa. My Father died in Operation Iraqi Freedom. I know all the adults around me are sad and I’m sad too, but I know that one of the things that helps me is when I get to do things that help me feel like a normal kid, like going to school and playing with my friends. I have a couple of friends at school whose dads died too. We don’t talk about it much, but it helps me to be around them. We just understand each other. How I plan to get through the holidays is the same as what I do to help me all the time. I write notes to him. I pretend he is here with me and I have a book where I put all the notes I write to him. My mom bought me a photo frame and I put a special note he wrote to me in it. At night I read it to myself:
“Marisa, to my dearest beautiful daughter, I love you more than anything in this world. No matter whatever happens, I will always be there for you and will always love you. Love, Dad”
