‘The View’ Co-Host Meghan McCain Snaps Heartbreaking Photo Upon Return to Arizona

Meghan McCain hasn’t been back in Arizona since 2018 following the death of her father, John McCain. The View co-host finally made her return home and shared a heartbreaking post on Instagram. The image showed her sitting on a bench with a space next to her and the American flag perched to the left of the vacant spot with mountains in the background. She simply put “512 days” as her caption, signifying the amount of days since her father’s passing. Her post garnered a ton of comments as people reached out in support of her as she made her first appearance in Arizona.

“Sending you a gentle hug,” one comment began. “I know your dad is there with you in your special, beautiful place.”

Another wrote, “I’m glad you’re home in AZ. Sending love to you and your family.”

Prior to her trip out west, McCain spoke with PEOPLE about how she’s finally ready to visit.

“I’m really looking forward to having some much needed family time,” she said.

A source in the article added that “she knows how difficult the visit will be” but that she realized it’s time to face reality. “After a crazy and emotionally taxing week,” the source continued, “Meghan feels the need to get out of the media bubble and remind herself of the people she represents on TV every day.”

Her father was 81 at the time of his passing. He suffered from a brain tumor. McCain took a brief break from The View before making her return.

This past Father’s Day — McCain’s first without her father — proved to be a difficult one for her. She sent out a tweet that day about how lonely she felt. “Anyone else out there who is dreading Father’s Day this Sunday — I feel you, and have been trying to come up with something positive to do Sunday,” she wrote. “So, I want you to feel free to share [dead dads club] stories on my timeline and I will share it. Maybe we will all feel less alone?”

McCain joined The View back in 2017. Back then, she was eager to get started and to be a part of an “iconic” show.

“It’s so iconic specifically sitting in this chair that Elisabeth [Hasselbeck] made so great,” McCain told The Hollywood Reporter. “To be the conservative on this show is something that I take very seriously, and I’m excited to bring a different perspective to the show.”