I went to my parents’ house on Sunday to celebrate my 44th birthday. The crowd consisted of my parents, sister, and nieces, who, thanks to their mom, wished me a happy 45th birthday.

My dad has a host of maladies and struggled to breathe throughout the afternoon and evening. It sucked to hear his effort to take each breath. And it did not dawn on me to be grateful for the painlessness accompanying each of my inhalations.

I thought about how different dad’s life is from five years ago. Back then, he would not sit still – pinballing from handyman to jigsaw puzzle-building to pop-pop duties. Now, he barely leaves the couch.

I will not dwell on those memories. Focusing on the past prevents me from cherishing the awesomeness of this moment.