Kelley Earnhardt Miller Shares Personal Moment with Dale Earnhardt Sr.

“Two months after this picture…he was gone,” said Miller, reflecting on a social media post on Tuesday morning.

Earnhardt finished one of the strongest seasons in his NASCAR career since he won his seventh Cup Series championship in 1994 and his second-place championship finish in 1995. He finished runner-up to 2000 champion Bobby Labonte, and all eyes were on the No. 3 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet to make another charge at a record-breaking eighth championship.

Earnhardt never got that chance.

“Life was messy back then, and we weren’t living on the best terms seeing Earnhardt to Earnhardt,” Miller continued in her post. “Stubbornness is a trait of ours. I don’t always post about his death. But life is still messy. Everyone’s is. Life is just that way.”

Lifelong fans may remember the family clashes at the racetrack. Earnhardt even mentioned that his son, Earnhardt Jr, wouldn’t work with anyone at Daytona in his first 500 start. It was that stubbornness that kept the family duo from a strong finish late in The Great American Race.

But that’s what made the Earnhardt family who they ever. Even today.

“(I’m) writing this to remind you for relationships that matter to you and it’s cliche, but keep the lines of communication open even when it’s hard, even when you think you think you are right and they are wrong, even when are mad, discouraged, think it’s impossible to be on the same page, communicate anyway,” Miller continued. “When we talk to each other, we start to understand, see a different viewpoint, and eventually, we learn to see and accept our differences.”

That heartfelt message rings true across one of NASCAR’s biggest families as well as families of fans around the world.