Through a Dream

Fourteen years after the death of my mother, and the day before my fiftieth birthday, my father had a heart attack. It made me realize just how fast life was travelling--and that I would give anything to put life on hold.

As I drove to the hospital, I wondered what it would be like to lose my last parent. Sights along the way brought me to fond memories of my incredible childhood. My entire family had always been there for me, no matter what.

At the beginning of my career, when I'd needed D...