For Dad, On Your Birthday in Heaven

Another year comes,

but you’re not here to see it.

The candles burn in silence,

and I whisper your name into the dark.

I ache for your voice—

the way it carried both love and strength.

I ache for your hands—

steady, warm, unshakable.

The world still moves forward,

but a piece of me stayed the day you left.

Grief has no calendar,

and love has no end.

Happy Birthday, Dad.

I hope the stars sang for you today.

I hope you felt me reaching—

because I always am.