It’s been years since Joey Feek passed, but for Rory, grief has never followed a straight line. It rises in the quietest moments — not on stage, not in the spotlight — but in the stillness of night, in the soft breath of a little girl who reminds him of all that was lost… and all that remains.
In a candid and deeply emotional conversation shared just 33 minutes ago, Rory Feek opened up about the one regret that continues to follow him, tucked between lullabies and long goodnights with his daughter, Indiana.
“Every time I tuck her in,” Rory said, “there’s a moment where I wonder if I’m doing enough. If Joey were here, would she be raising Indy better than I am? Would she sing her to sleep with a gentler voice? Would Indy feel more… complete?”
His voice trembled as he spoke — not out of weakness, but out of love that never found closure.
Since losing Joey in 2016 to cervical cancer, Rory has devoted his life to honoring her memory and raising their daughter with the same grace, faith, and honesty that Joey lived by. And yet, even with all the songs he’s written, all the journals filled with hope and pain, Rory admits this truth:
“I still feel like I’m only half of what Indy deserves.”
He describes bedtime as both a blessing and a burden — a sacred routine wrapped in memories, where Indy asks for her mom, and he reaches for words that will never be enough.
“Sometimes she just says, ‘Tell me about Mama.’ And I do. But there are nights I go downstairs afterward and just cry. Because I want Indy to feel whole. And I can’t give her that.”
But even in sorrow, Rory finds something close to redemption.
He says that Indy — with her bright spirit, her laughter, her fierce joy — has taught him that love doesn’t have to be perfect to be powerful. And that even in the shadow of loss, light can find a way through.
“She gives me a reason to be better,” he said. “And on the nights I feel like I’m failing, I remember — Joey trusted me with this little girl. That has to mean something.”
And it does. To everyone who has followed their story, who’s cried and prayed and hoped along with them, Rory and Indy are not just surviving — they’re growing something beautiful from the ashes.
Still, the regret lingers.
And maybe it always will.
But so does love.
So does legacy.
And every night, as Rory tucks Indy in — even with his doubts — she whispers, “I love you, Daddy.”
And in that moment, he knows: somehow, that’s enough.