Melissa Rawson has shared a heartbreaking update on her blog, Her Second Shift, after revealing the sudden death of her estranged father.
The former Married At First Sight star, 35, revealed in her latest post on Monday that she deeply regrets not making amends with her father, who she hadn’t heard from in 13 years.
In the poignant message, she said her ‘guilt outweighs the grief’ and took to Instagram to share an image of the pair from her childhood.
‘My father will never know me as the woman I grew up to be, one he could hopefully be proud of. He will never meet or know his grandchildren,’ she wrote.
Melissa shares two-year-old twin boys Tate and Levi with her husband Bryce Ruthven, who she met on the Channel Nine dating experiment MAFS.
‘I have grieved since a young age for a father who was never around. Now, I am grieving for a second time,’ she continued.
The mum-of-two said her father’s death did not come as a surprise given the lifestyle he led, but she always had a ‘glimmer of hope’ that they would reconcile.
She went on to say she was overwhelmed with emotions following his passing, but her most prominent feelings were ‘anger, sadness, regret and shame’.
The last time Melissa saw her father was when she was 19 years old and attending her cousin’s wedding.
He told her he thought of her every time he heard the Green Day song Time of Your Life, and Melissa spent 16 years refusing to listen to it – now she can’t stop.
‘In moments like this, I realise; Life is short. If you’re ready, don’t let that moment of forgiveness pass you by,’ the reality TV star said.
Melissa and husband Bryce shot to fame on MAFS in 2021 and were considered the most controversial couple during the explosive eighth season.
They were at the centre of controversy from the very start when Bryce was accused of flirting with another bride and having a ‘secret girlfriend’ outside the show.
He was also labelled a ‘gaslighter’, with viewers so outraged by his behaviour they made complaints to the Australian media watchdog.
Despite being engulfed in drama on the program, Bryce and Melissa have defied all odds and formed a lasting romance since leaving the show.