Lindsay "The Gift"
Photography by Randy Bacon
“My mom was killed instantly in a car accident, and I thought my life was going to spiral down.” Lindsay Farr was living her dream in Florida. The hot Miami days of her youth were glittered with everything a 21-year-old girl could be happy with--until she got the call.
“I was in Miami because I wanted to be a model, but when I got the call that my mom was killed instantly in a fatal car crash, my life took a drastic turn. My mom and dad were married for 26 years and now my dad was alone, back in Missouri. Like most 20-somethings, I didn’t think about the gift of having my mom here on earth as much as I should have. Suddenly, these things that were filling me with temporary happiness didn’t matter anymore. All that mattered now was getting back to dad even if that meant giving up my dream. I was really loving Miami, but I knew I had to go home for dad.”
So she moved back to her hometown, packing everything with her, except her dream of becoming a model. As she thought of the future without her mom, she started counting her losses. “I began to think about the things that I needed my mom for. My first career, my graduation, my engagement and my wedding. The thought of someday having a baby without her frightened me. I knew that my dad was scared too, but I knew that we could get through this together.”
But sad stories don’t have to have sad endings. “Once I got back to Missouri, I realized that my mom gave me everything I needed in those 21 years, and that was a blessing. The other gift that came out of this was meeting Frank, the love of my life. If mom had not gotten in the car accident I would have never found him."
It wasn’t the way she would have chosen to have met Frank, but she is it at peace with it now. “Planning the wedding of my dreams without my mom was probably one of the toughest challenges life has thrown at me. I will never get that out of my head, and without Frank, I would be lost. His love and support is so tremendous, it gets me through it all. He is such a blessing to my life."
"So, looking back, I see a story that caused a lot of tears that turned into gifts....I think this is the beauty of a lot of stories that present hardships. Personally, I could have stayed in South Beach and lived a "dream", but family comes first and me being in Missouri with my dad was way more important. Now he respects me so much more for coming back to be with him. It's brought me and my dad so close. If I were to give advice to people at that age or any age for that matter - in your life, if your parents aren't a priority then they should be. Never take your parents for granted. They are the only people in this world that truly have your back. You never realize what you had until it's gone.