today at noon, i will give the word to take my dad off his ventilator. he is not getting better. he is only getting worse. he would never want to be this way. i need to give word because i am next of kin. no one else can say to remove his life support. this is my burden.

my dad was that guy that if during a storm you needed another shirt to keep you warm, he would take off his own so you would not have to suffer. he would stop everything to come help you jump start your car, or bend over backwards to make your life easier. he loved life and live every moment to his fullest. he leaves behind so many, many people who love him and miss him so much.

i signed a paper yesterday allowing them to use my dad as an organ donor. he passed the test and is allowed to donate. i take so much joy in knowing that someone may have a daddy who is dying, and will be save by my dad.

the donor people will be giving me 4 prints of my dad's hands. one for me, one for my little sister, one for my mom, and one for his fiancé sue. that way we will always have a little part of my dad that we would not normally have.

i want to take a brief second to thank anyone and EVERYONE who has dropped me an IM, or an email, or a message here. i want to thank you for you "i'm sorry's", your "<3's", your sympathies. i want to thank you for praying for my dad, meditating on him, wishing him well in his final hours. i want to thank anyone who went to see him in ICU these last 36 hours, or anyone who came to see me to make sure i was okay.

my dad was only 50 years and 13 days old. he lived beyond his years and died doing what he loved, helping his friends.

i love you daddy. and i miss you. and i am so sorry for being the one who needs to let you go.

patrick lewis manning; August 13th 1954 - August 26th 2004.