"DA!" I hear her call in the predawn darkness.
One of the great things about being an old man with this much cancer is, I'm usually awake at times like this.
Moving as quickly as I can, which takes forever, from the sofa to her room, moving like some kind of ninja super hero, I'm sitting beside her on the bed before she calls again.
"Good Morning," I whisper.
"Daddy, I had a bad dream," she cries, hugging me tight.
"It's okay," I say, hugging her back.
Che catches her breath, lays back on the pillow and looks at me.
"What was it?" I ask her.
"I dreamed you were gone," she answers, large tears welling in her big blue eyes.
"Oh pa-leeze," I grin, tickling, hugging and kissing her, "I'm right here.
And then everything's fine.
Che rushes to hug Lainey, plays with the foster puppy, desperately needs Sarah to get dressed for school, all the while dancing, singing and smiling.
And that's how the day begins.
"Dad, remember that dream I had," she says, holding my hand, walking home after school."
"Yeah."
"I thought about that at lunch today."
"Oh yeah?" I answer, truly shocked.
"Yeah," she says, looking at me smiling. "That's all."
It's hard to not get caught up in these precious moments but, Holy Christ!, that would be the death of me.
So I don't get caught up in them.
I get high instead.
The rest of the day's spent having fun, waiting on Sarah to get home from work.
When she does, we walk to the Mexican dinner around the corner, and then stroll to Leopold's for ice cream.
It's a perfect family time, save for the Mexican restaurant completely botching Sarah's dinner.
Today, Che's obsessed with how much time I'm spending writing "The Story of my Life", that I'm leaving for her after I'm gone.
I'm not even finished with it but the kid watches me writing, coloring, pasting as I write and she's knows it's for her and, she can't wait.
"You're killing me," I tell Che twenty times a day.
She laughs.
I appreciate the irony.
Over the years, many friends have shared Tim McCraw's song "Live like you're dying," which is a challenge to make it a way of life.
It is at our house.
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Having the celebration of my life now! Be a part of it at https://gofund.me/ffda4f4b
