I think of my parents and the amazing life they have given me

To The Daily Sun,

As we come into the season of giving, I would like to give thanks to my parents and let them know how truly grateful I am. You brought me into this world with all of the best intentions. You did what you thought was right for me. You loved me. You cared for me. You taught me. You protected me.

You showed me what I needed to do to be my own person. You gave me as many experiences as my little heart desired. You showed me the right roads and you showed me the wrong. You nurtured that until it was time to let me go and then you could only hope that I'd learned all the lessons you'd taught me through my years.

Maybe I went out and made all the right decisions and made you only proud. To this I would owe all to you. Maybe I went out and made all the wrong decisions and gave you only heartache. To this I would only have myself to blame for nothing changes the fact that you taught me all the right lessons in life. One of those would be to make my own choices. Whether right or wrong they were mine and only I can be held responsible for them.

Being the parents you are and showing nothing but love, unconditionally, you feel responsible for all my shortcomings but very rarely take credit for any of my success. You need to know that you play no role in my faults but only in my accomplishments. And I've taken you for granted, for it's not until I had my own family that I finally felt the heartache I have given you through my own children's pain and anguish. I now realize that sometimes was it not only difficult to my parent but very painful. For this I will apologize forever.

As we all get older and closer to the days that we may not have each other in our lives, nothing is more important to me than to be sure that you know you did everything right. I may not always be proud of the things I've done or lack thereof, but I am proud of the person I have become. I am fair, loving, honest, hardworking. I am a good brother and uncle. I am a friend to anyone and a shoulder for support to whoever needs one. Most important I'm a father, and I try to be as good a parent to my children as you were to me. I don't know if I can but I will spend the rest of my life trying.

This is the success that you get all the credit for. This is what you have done for me. So when the time comes that you must leave me, please take with you the thought that during the very darkest times in my life, I only thought of you and the amazing life that you have given me. I have never stopped feeling the love and I will never do so. And when i look into my children's eyes and see the amazing people that they have become, I will always see you and remember how grateful I am to have you as my parents. Happy Holidays!

Todd Welch

Tilton