I Am a Father

[big]Why Is It So Important For A Father To Be In His Daughter's Life?[/big]

THIS QUESTION WAS ASKED OF ME BY A YOUNG WOMAN:
[i]Why is it so important for a father to be in his daughter's life?[/i]

After standing there for a few minutes with my jaw hanging down, I finally answered:

This question just blows me away. Seriously. You don't know?

I don't know the relationship you have with your father. I do know the one I have with my daughter, however. I know why I am the way I am, and why I do things the way I do them. So, again, I can't speak for all dads, just me.

1. My daughter is the first girl born in my family line in 64 years. No, that's not a typo. 64 years. To say she is treasured beyond all measure is an understatement, considering that in my family, you only get ONE daughter per generation, and usually the first born. So, yeah. Nothing will come between me and her, unless it wants to suffer pain with extreme prejudice. Try to harm her, and pain will be the least of your worries. That's not a promise. It's a guarantee.

2. I am her Knight and her Protector. I am the Shield between her and a cruel world that doesn't care about her welfare and well being, until such a time that she can do it on her own, with or without my having her back.

3. I am her Teacher. I am her Mentor. I must impart to her all the skills I have, so that she may survive and thrive, flourishing in a world that will one day not have me there anymore, because eventually-- we all die.

4. I am the Example. I am the Template. I am what she will consider "normal" for a husband and a future father to be, and what she will seek for companionship when she is looking for a mate, and as such, I must be the kind of man that I would want my daughter to be with, one who will love her with all of his heart and soul, and give themselves completely to her.

5. I am her Truth. I am her Rock. I never lie to her. I keep my morals and my ideals constant, a solid foundation upon which she may build her own. I live by my word, and by my deeds, one and the same. She knows that I am consistent, and she can count on it, no matter what.

I could go on, but that's the basics. I don't know why it's important for anyone else, but I know why it is for me.

It's because she so important to me.

GwydionFrost · 56-60, M

I wrote this before remarrying... I now have two daughters. They know-- but, like all children, sometimes they forget there is a method to the madness, a reason for doing what we do. On the plus side, because of that, I can confidently say that they will never break under enemy interrogation, nor fall asleep during long college lectures. :P

LunadelobosIAMTHEDRAGON · F

Why is she lucky? I am not saying she's not but every child ought to have a father who cares and loves them.

Being a parent is a HUGE commitment, a lifetime commitment.
Of TWO people, not just a mother. (Or just a father). And their families too..
It changes you :)
It makes you better as a human being.

It should not be some privilege that daddy sticks around and daddy gives a massive hoot.

Sadly, it does seem that way, more often than I care to admit.

SW-User

@Lunadelobos: She's lucky because the way things SHOULD BE is often not the way they are; a father who thinks this way is rare. I'm not insinuating that fathers shouldn't think this way, I'm simply acknowledging the fact that most do not, therefore most daughters do not have the kind of father she has.