True life story Me and My Daddy

True life story about “Rozanne and Daddy”
Hi Family, I just want to share a story about my relationship with my father, and the life I’m living without a father. Well, I was born in the year 1990 at the Middlemore Hospital to a beautiful loving, caring Christian parents. I’m always known as daddy’s girl, spending every time he has free from all the commitments he has committed himself for God’s Kingdom. Praying every day and night to protect my father where he is, where he goes and whatever he does. Asking God to bring him safely home from a long day of work or travelling to Samoa with our senior pastor doing some missionary work or building our new church.
I never told your mother but…
In the year 2001, we were in Samoa for our family Christmas reunion on my father’s side. My father and I were just sitting on the white sandy beaches in Savaii, and a tear dropped from his face. I asked, “Dad why are you crying?” He replied, “I’ve never told your mother this but for 37 years I have been trying to look for my biological father.. Always praying to God for answers, if he’s still alive or dead.” I started to cry, feeling the pain my father had for those 37years of his life trying to look for his father. In the year 2003, we came back to Samoa for some missionary work with our senior pastor and his family. While at the wharf in Salelologa, my father told my mother he wants to go and look for his father. My mother being the stubborn one, replied to him “Ae ua oki lou kama I le kaua, lea le mea ua e koe fia maga’o e koe su’e lou kama I gei kausaga e tolu sefulu fitu na ia tuua ai oulua ma lou tina, o ia ga sola e fai seisi oga aiga I le kaimi ga fanau lou tina ia oe” (Your father must be dead from the war, why would you even think about him and say you want to go and look for him after all these thirty-seven years he left you and your mother.)
My mother’s had soften as she accepted my fathers..
Hearing those words from my own mother’s mouth brought tears to my eyes, and anger thinking how can she say such things like that to my father. A few days later, my mother’s heart had soften as she accepted my father’s request to go on a mission to look for his father. Once again we were at the wharf, all of a sudden my father came running to the car where my mother, my sister and two of my cousins were sleeping and he was leaping for joy and saying “I FOUND MY DAD, I FOUND MY DAD.” Seeing my dad really happy that day was one of the best days of my life. So later on that day we went to the village of Matavai Safune, where we met up with the guy my dad was talking to at the wharf to show us the house where we would find his dad. As we drove up the long driveway, as we turned in my father said “Fa’akali mai kokogu le ka’avale, so’u alu e vaai muamua po’o le fale lea o lo’o gofo iai lo’u tama, ke’I ua kuli kakou I fafo o le nu’u” (Wait here in the car, while I go and see if this is my father’s house first, otherwise they might kick us out of the village.” Two hours later my dad came back with two ladies linking arms, my mother was getting annoyed, thinking who those ladies were with my dad. My dad chuckled and told us to come out of the car to meet our aunties and the rest of the family. Sitting in between my dad and my grandpa was a blessing to have finally met my grandfather, and see a smile on my dad’s face knowing that the missing hole in his heart was filled with joy.
Teardrop came down his cheek and surprisingly…
The following year 2004, my father had an accident at a building construction area in Takanini, where he slipped on the wet platform and fell head first to the concrete floors. He was in a coma for a week, visiting him everyday after school lying in his bed can’t move but he can hear what people are saying to him. One night, I read the letter from his dad praying that he gets better and comes and visits him again. As I bent over to kiss him goodnight, I said “I LOVE YOU DADDY”, then a teardrop came down his cheek and surprisingly he squeezed my hand. I ran outside and told my mum and the others about what just happened. The next night, I was really happy to go see my dad, as we drove to the Auckland Hospital my cousins were really quite in the car. Wondering, are they not telling my sister and I something or they just had a long day at work. Sure enough I knew something was wrong when we drove into a different parking space in the back of the hospital. As we walked into a small house, our senior and assistant pastors were all sitting with their hands over their eyes. I started to feel shaky as I moved closer to our family members who were holding each other trying not to cry. At that moment I just wanted to shout “WHERE’S MY DAD, WHERE’S MY DAD”, my mum walked out of the back room, trying to be calm and strong and just hugged my sister and I. She whispered, “YOUR DADDY IS IN A BETTER PLACE, STAY STRONG”. I just stood still and went blank, flashbacks of my father floating in front of my eyes, not even a tear coming down my face. What does this mean? Is it really true?? I asked my mum, to take me where my dad was, and sure enough when I saw my father lying there, paled face not even moving, I just screamed my lungs out crying “DADDY WHY, COME BACK DON’T LEAVE ME”.
The pain of loosing your dad at the age of 12 was really hard..
Family pulling my sister and I away from our father, I wrestled my way back to where my dad was lying. Kneeling beside him holding his hand, our senior pastor came up to me, placed his hand on my shoulder and said “Lila, e leai se aoga e toe tagi I luga o le pusa oti, ua uma le ola o lou Tama. Manatua mea uma na ia faia mo oe ma tausaga na lua mafuta ai. O lo’o iai o ia I le nofoaga o lo’o sili ona manuia o lo’o fa’atali mo’I tatou uma, ia loto tele ma tula’I e tauave ma ave pea le galuega lelei o lou Tama na fai” (Lila, there is no use of crying over your father’s dead body when he is in the coffin. Remember he is now in a better place waiting for all of us to be with him. Be strong and carry on the good work your father has done”. The pain of losing your dad at the age of 12 was really hard, you can’t think straight and sometimes you don’t believe it’s actually true once you’ve actually seen the proof yourself.
My mother
On my father’s 5th year anniversary in the year 2009, I’ve realized I have shut out an important person in my life for 19 years. Yes, it’s my dear mother who I have not made contact with or even tried to build a motherly daughter relationship with. How could I do such a thing? When my dad passed away, yes family were there till they left after we buried him, but my own loving mother was by my side 24/7. She always prays to God, to give me the strength to keep moving on and never to think about what happened 5 years ago. My mother was the person who went out to find a second job just to look after my sister and I. How can I be so selfish to my own mother, the woman who carried me in her womb for 9 months. If she didn’t have the patience to take that last push I wouldn’t even be here today. Thankfully, my mother and I have built a closer relationship getting over the death of our beloved and taking care of our small family.
I love you Dad.
I sometimes wish that my dad was still here so I can say “I LOVE YOU DAD”. We still have the pain of losing a loved one, but in God’s Word, he says “He Is A Father To The Fatherless” and that is so true. No matter how much pain we have in our hearts, we know that our Heavenly Father is always with us and He Will Never Leave Nor Forsake Us. Dad I know your up there watching over us everyday and protecting us from any harm. Thank you so much for everything you have done for us, providing shelter over our heads, the clothes on our backs, the food on the table and the endless love you have shown your family. Love you so much daddy, gone but never forgotten in our hearts. R.I.P Thank you for reading my story

Rozanne Melila Ta'ala
Student Support Advisor (Activities)
Student Experience
Manukau Institute of Technology
Gate 11 North Campus, Otara Road
Phone: (09) 968 8000 extn 7072