It is with great sadness that I post this blog entry and mark the recent death of my father, James Ernstsen. I’ve thought about what I’d write here for a few days now and I’ve come to the simple conclusion that while internet blogs are meant to share various events in ones life with family, friends, and complete strangers wandering around the “inter-tubes”, I’m not sure I’m comfortable writing a eulogy of my father here. I don’t want to depress any of my readers, while at the same time I what to honor my father, for he was a great man, no one can deny that. So I’ll simply say this…he was a great father, taught me everything I needed to become a good man, loving husband, and caring father myself. I love him, and know he loved me and was proud of me.
You hear it all the time, “I never got to say good-bye.” While it’s true I never got so say the words “good-bye” to him, I think that I personally was prepared and ready for his passing after seeing him deteriorate and suffer from the cancer and surgeries he had endured over that past 6 months or so. I have no regrets, no “I wish I would have said…”, and no “I should have been there more” feelings. I was there for him when I needed to be, I talked to him the day before his death, and we were on good terms (as we always have been). So that in and of itself is what comforts me now…no regrets.
The sole Marine member of the VFW Honor Guard that honored my father at the graveside service saluted my father casket ceremoniously, as the other VFW members did, and then with as much honor and force he could, yelled “Semper Fi”. While all of us there at the services somewhat chuckled as we all knew, “yep, that’s Dad alright”, it was the icing on the cake and completed the services making them perfect in my eyes. While Dad has always been proud to be a Marine, he always did so in a humble manner. So while I always knew he was a Marine, and that Semper Fi is their motto, until that day I never knew what it meant. The first thing I did when I got home that day, after changing out of my suit, was to look up the meaning of Semper Fi on the internet. “Always Faithfull”. Yep, that’s Dad alright.
Semper Fi Dad, we’ll miss ya.
