My entire life I had been afraid to lose him and when I did it was one of the deepest moments we had ever shared together. Krazy Dick was my father. He died August 5, 2007.

Richard Seward, AKA Krazy Dick...always went against the flow. He even spelled crazy different. He had lived a good life. Some might think that means a pure life...not so. He simply lived a good, full life. He had successes and he had failures. He had a failed marriage, several failed businesses. There were other mistakes typical of 83 years. There were fortunes made and fortunes lost and he had a family that always stood by him.

His successes outweighed his failures. He used to say...just fail forward. It seems this attitude served him well. He had children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He had been married to my mother for 62 years. Through thick and thin they stayed together. And on his death bed he was a shining example of what a loving relationship really is...my mother held his head when he was dying and kissed him all over his face and told him what a good friend he had been to her. How much better does it get?

I got there on Friday morning around 6:30 AM. Dad had been in the hospital since Tuesday with an infection from the dialysis. He had abused his body for years and the abuse had finally caught up with him. He was struggling to breath and he was hooked up to all sorts of beeping machines. He smiled when I came in and reached for me to give me a hug. Since it was hard for him to talk, I asked him if he knew who I was and he nodded and smiled. Then he said my childhood nickname..."Pete The Pot".

I had flown from Phoenix to Omaha and rented a car and drove all night to be by his side. When my brother told him I was coming he simply asked, "Am I going to die?"

I visited once a year and it was typically not when he was in the hospital. He had been in and out over the years and I never got the feeling that I did this time. I knew I had to be there. I knew it would be our final goodbye.

Once I saw dad, I called my husband and told him to get the kids and come. I knew with certainty that this was it. They arrived Saturday morning around 3:00 AM. Dad cried when he saw the kids. He loved them so much.

The next day was a beautiful experience that I will not ever forget. Not being a religious man, I was surprised when dad kept looking around my head with wonder and delight. He seemed to enjoy what he was seeing. I finally said, "Dad, what are you looking

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