Dwayne Johnson Says He'll 'Cherish' This 'Beautiful' Christmas Gift Honoring His Late Father
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Dwayne Johnson is sharing a thoughtful gift he got for Christmas this year in memory of his late father.
The actor's father, Rocky Johnson, a Canadian professional wrestler, died in January of this year at age 75. On Thursday, Johnson shared a photo on Instagram of a paperweight he was given for the holidays, with a photo of his younger self next to his athlete dad inside the glass desk accessory.
"I'm extremely hard to buy Christmas gifts for, so sentimental gifts like this mean the world to me," he begins the caption for his post. "A family friend had this made for me. A paper weight to keep on my desk of me and my dad at the gym. I was too young to hit the weights back then, but after his workouts he'd always take me on the wrestling mats and beat my little ass. Those days were important."
"My old man died suddenly, earlier this year," Johnson adds. "I never had a chance to say goodbye. F------ 2020 huh?! Still a beautiful gift, I'll cherish. #thelittlethings"
RELATED: Dwayne Johnson Reflects on Not Knowing What to Write for His Late Father's Eulogy
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Back in January, Johnson honored his dad in a touching tribute on Instagram.
"I was the boy sitting in the seats, watching and adoring you, my hero from afar," he wrote at the time. "The boy you raised to always be proud of our cultures and proud of who and what I am. The boy you raised with the toughest of love. The intense work. The hard hand. The adoring boy who wanted to know only your best qualities. Who then grew to become a man realizing you had other deeply complicated sides that needed to be held and understood. Son to father. Man to man."
"That’s when my adoration turned to respect. And my empathy turned to gratitude," continued Johnson. "Grateful that you gave me life. Grateful you gave me life’s invaluable lessons. Dad, I wish I had one more shot to tell you, I love you, before you crossed over to the other side. But you were ripped away from me so fast without warning. Gone in an instant and no coming back. Im in pain. But we both know it’s just pain and it’ll pass. Now I’ll carry your mana and work ethic with me, as it’s time to move on because I have my family to feed and work to accomplish."
"Finally, I want you to rest your trailblazing soul, Soulman. Pain free, regret free, satisfied and at ease. You lived a very full, very hard, barrier breaking life and left it all in the ring. I love you dad and I’ll always be your proud and grateful son. Go rest high," Johnson concluded.
Later in the year, Johnson and his family dealt with another tough hurdle — battling COVID-19.
In September, the star announced that he and his family had tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), admitting that one of the most difficult parts of the whole ordeal was the fact that his entire family got sick.
"I wish it was only me who tested positive, but it wasn't, it was my entire family, so this one was a real kick in the gut," he said. "My No.1 priority is to always protect my family. And protect my children, my loved ones."
Luckily, the actor, 48, and his wife, Lauren Hashian, and their daughters Jasmine, 4, and Tiana, 2, successfully recovered.
“We are no longer contagious," said Johnson at the time. "Thank God, we are healthy."
