Dear Papa,

We didn’t deserve that. To be treated like that. We were a family. Notice the ‘were’. You’re the one that left us. You packed your bags and never came back.

You could have at least said goodbye in your note. The note on the fridge with that tiny magnet from our family vacation to Disney World.

A father is supposed to nurture his children, teach them. We were supposed to be able to look up to you, Matt and me. We could have had everything, we could have been a family, all of us, you me, Ma, Matty.

But now, because of you, we’re broken. We’re not perfect, not like I ever thought we could be.

I know you’re probably some place halfway across the country now. Maybe you even got married again, maybe you even have children. If you do, I hope you’re a father to them. I hope you taught them how to ride a bike, or throw a baseball.

Maybe they’ll grow up, and go to college. Then graduate. Maybe they already did.