Fathers and Daughters

There is something special about the relationship between fathers and their daughters that, truthfully I learn a little bit more about each day. I met this father/daughter today and he explained, through his actions, how much he loves his beautiful daughter.

It's often the unsaid things, I find, that provide clarity and guidance in these relationships. Holding hands to prevent falls when the daughter is young, watching baseball games together and forging lifelong ties to certain teams, making bread for the family on Sunday afternoons...whatever the rituals might be, they are important and meaningful to both the father and his daughter.

I learned this by witnessing my own father's love for my sister. It was special and I knew it (she truly was the favorite, after all!). I now understand and appreciate that relationship, and the example my dad provided me, in a whole new way. As I sit here in Nicaragua, thousands of miles from my own incredible daughters, my hope is that they understand and feel the power of our relationship in the same way I do. I love watching them be the strong young women that they are - it's a true gift.