If you're like me, then you found yourself uncontrollably sobbing when watching the latest episode of "This is Us." I suddenly felt so grateful for my family and was reminded of the fragility of life. I even texted my dad "I love you, thanks for everything" at midnight and he probably thought I was crazy.
But then thinking about it I realized that my dad isn't so much different from the "Jack Pearson" we raise so high on a pedestal.
We tend to think of Jack as the ultimate man to ever live, but we forget that most of our dads are just as heroic as him. To start off, my mom and my dad raised triplet girls, which is pretty crazy.
Like Kate and Jack, they always let us choose our own path and supported our dreams. They sacrificed time, energy, and money to drive us like crazy people to three different high schools, only so we would end up at three colleges across the country. They have made so many quiet, day-to-day sacrifices to get us to where we are in the most joyful manner possible.
And here's the crazy part--my house set on fire about a year and a half ago.
I had left a candle burning in my room, and when I left it somehow caught my whole room on fire. I went out with my grandparents. I had left my car in the driveway and the TV on in the house. When my dad came home, he saw this and though I was in my room. He ran through the thick and deadly black smoke of my burning room to try to find me. He put the fire out himself without hesitation. I returned his call while this was going on. Once he realized I was okay, he even got all of the pets out of the house.
My dad is a silent hero.
I got so lucky that he was okay that day. Sure, he isn't the star of a famous TV show, but he is just as brave, heroic, and loving as Jack Pearson. He would - and already has - sacrifice anything and everything for my sisters, my mom and I. We have so much to be thankful for.
Never forget how much your parents have sacrificed for you. And never hesistate to say I thank you and I love you. We all put Jack on such a high pedestal, but we all must remember we often have a Jack Pearson standing right in front of us.
Here is a video I made, dedicated to my dad.
