He was reading my favorite childhood stories, reminiscing about our happiest moments, and—most incredibly—offering words of wisdom for my future self.

At the end of the tape, he said something that made my tears fall even harder.

Since he knew he wouldn’t be around to meet my children, he wanted me to pass the cassette on to them—so they could hear his voice, so they could “meet” their granddad.

And that’s exactly what I did.

Now, this cassette is my most cherished possession, and my son loves listening to it too. Even my mom had no idea it was there. I still can’t believe we never knew about it.

It feels like my dad found a way to reach us, even after all these years.