Probably going to get buried, and there are so many more deserving comments, but what the heck.

To start my story, I need to bring you to context of my family. We are on the lower end of the middle class and I am currently the only one in my family who has and is actively attempting to obtain a college degree from a accredited university. My parents own a small ranch with some livestock in rural Utah and we never were really able to afford fine luxuries. I am the youngest sibling in my family, my brother dropped out of highschool and later graduated with a GED. Meaning I was the only child my parents could see walk for highschool graduation... meaning it was a pretty big deal.

When it was my turn to step up to the plate and graduate. It was really important to my folks that everything went perfect, and I honestly mean that they spent days getting everything ready including intensive cleaning, preparing vasts amount of food, etc. easily said, they busted their asses all in the account of me.

Unfortunately, My father is a type 1 diabetic, (the childhood one where you have shoot up insulin regularly.) In addition to all the effort he exerting preparing things, his body wasn't processing his insulin correctly result in a dangerously low blood sugar the next morning.

When my mother couldn't get his blood sugar to rise, we had to call the ambulance in the early morning on the day of my graduation. He was hospitalized and the staff had to monitor him closely to ensure that his blood sugar regularized. When a diabetic's blood sugar gets low, higher functions of the brain are impaired. I like to relate it to arguing with a 4 year old girl in the body of a 40 year old man. However, if it gets too low, they can fall into comas (At least If I'm not mistaken, I'm not a healthcare professional, so I could be hazy on the details) My father was in the later stage due to the lack of sugar and also because I think hospital was required to sedate him because of severe lack of sugar induced aggression.

I was absolutely terrified, I though to myself why could something like this happen and why would it happen to my saint of a father? Is it by extension my fault? I was so terrified that my dad would never be the same. I remember after he was admitted to the hospital, going to graduation exhausted, partially from the early morning endeavor and terror for my father. I remember after getting out of practice, being asked by friends if we wanted to go hang out and my response was a timid "um.. I can't... my dad got hospitalized this morning and I really need to see him." "Oh..."

My dad was released later that day but he was extremely weak and mentally impaired due to the weakness. Even though we were all ready to start cooking a grand feast, due to the circumstances, we had to order pizza for everyone who came to support my parents and I.

When it actually came to graduation time, my mother couldn't leave my fathers side and insisted I still go to graduation. I obliged and my grandparents and siblings came to watch as my mother stayed home watching my father.

I can remember standing there trying to be proud of my accomplishments while holding back my tears spawned out of the fear my father will never be the same and that both my parents couldn't see me walk.

It was a rough night for everyone, and we tried our best to enjoy it despite the circumstances. He remained in his exhausted state for a few days until he finally recovered back to normal. It is almost impossible to describe the amount of relief and joy I felt when I saw him back to his normal self.

At this time he is all well and good. However, despite little bits of akwardness we feel when we discuss the issue (we have a hard time discussing feelings) he made me promise him that I have to graduate college so we can have a second shot.

TLDR: Dad got hospitalized on my graduation day, resulting in parents missing graduation, absolutely ecstatic when he was okay

EDIT: god fuck I suck at typing