10 Years Old

2014 was the year I turned 10, and it was the year that changed me forever. My father, who had always struggled with health issues, passed away. As a child, I never grasped how serious his condition truly was— kids see their parents as invincible. But that night shattered that illusion. I’ll never forget being woken up by my mom, her voice trembling with fear and heartbreak as she told me the devastating news. There’s nothing that can prepare you for losing a parent, a piece of yourself, so suddenly and permanently.

That year was marked by an indescribable heaviness. It forced me to grow up in ways no child should have to, learning to navigate a world where someone so central to my life was no longer there. It’s ironic that the top song of 2014 was Pharrell’s “Happy,” when it felt like happiness was a distant memory.