Recently someone from the Cricut Message Board announced a RAK she was doing. In order to have a chance to win, you had to post about someone who inspires you. I chose to write about a man I met 18 months ago or so whom I now call Dad. I decided to include that story here.
After escaping my abusive marriage my children and I relocated. As you may or may not know, we are LDS (aka Mormon) and we always find a "ward family" to go to wherever we are. This time though, my current ward has redefined my definition of that phrase "ward family"....
Men get together in pairs called Home Teachers and are assigned to look after a few families....we LDS people really take care of our own and this helps the Bishop ensure everyone is doing ok. Well, my Home Teacher is a very busy man and not very reliable when it comes to OFFICIALLY being my Home Teacher (he is supposed to come with a monthly message and never does etc etc)...he is however a GEM of a man and I feel blessed to know him. Whenever I need to borrow a "Dad" for a father-daughter activity he's here, when we moved in and needed furniture put together he stayed till pretty late (after 10 probably) to put it all together, he's hung shelving, his family took us to church every week till we got our own car, etc etc....
So anyway....shortly after we arrived, he went out of town and asked his counselor (kind of like an assistant) to look after my family in his absence. It was then we met the man I now call my dad...
This man got VERY close to my family very quickly and soon my children came to me and asked "Do you think Brother ----- would mind if we called him Grandpa?" He didn't mind one bit and soon after I was calling him Dad.
Over the last 18 months or so, we've grown very very close. He is my "go to" guy for just about everything and I find myself inspired by his counsel and words ALLLLLL the time but no time more inspirational than this....
It was February...he was taking me and Mini 2 to therapy and I was sitting in the truck with him waiting my turn to visit our counselor. We were talking about some of the fear I was living with due to the circumstances surrounding my divorce and I was in tears. After a rather long preface to ensure he didn't hurt my feelings he said something I now hang on to daily "My dear, when you can learn to trust Heavenly Father as much as He trusts you, you will no longer need to live in fear." It was like a kidney punch directly into my heart....my life has never been the same since.
I am so grateful for this man....unfortunately circumstances such as they are he is unable to to do so, if he could though, he would TOTALLY adopt me. I have never known a father's love until I met this man...my own father is a complete waste of space...neither he or my brother have any respect for him....I've never met him, despite having talked to him several times, and he didn't even recognize my brother 4 or 5 years ago when our grandfather died and he came to the funeral...only thing great my bio father has done is give my brother and I the gift of each other....my mom is a bum magnet...her current fiance is a pedophile to help you get the idea, so none of the men in her life are or were role-model/father material....
And then, thanks to an unexpected move, I gained a father figure and FINALLY know what that "daddy-daughter" relationship is all about and I must say I am HOOKED. I am a Daddy's girl BIG TIME!
My Dad inspires me because he, too, sees more in me than I often see in myself and carefully and thoughtfully says and does things that allow my BEST self to shine! He ALWAYS makes me feel better when I'm bummed...often in just a statement or two and his love and support have been a key component of our surviving our situation. My girls want to marry men just like him, and my son wants to grow up to be the kind of man he is.
There is NO blood connection to us, but he is my dad and he will tell you himself if you ask him. His love for my family has changed our lives and his influence makes us better people and we are so lucky to have him.
Daddy who are you are makes a difference EACH and EVERY day of our lives and it is an honor and privilege to know you and have you in our lives. Thank you so much for all you do and all you are, your grandchildren and I love you more than you will EVER know!
After escaping my abusive marriage my children and I relocated. As you may or may not know, we are LDS (aka Mormon) and we always find a "ward family" to go to wherever we are. This time though, my current ward has redefined my definition of that phrase "ward family"....
Men get together in pairs called Home Teachers and are assigned to look after a few families....we LDS people really take care of our own and this helps the Bishop ensure everyone is doing ok. Well, my Home Teacher is a very busy man and not very reliable when it comes to OFFICIALLY being my Home Teacher (he is supposed to come with a monthly message and never does etc etc)...he is however a GEM of a man and I feel blessed to know him. Whenever I need to borrow a "Dad" for a father-daughter activity he's here, when we moved in and needed furniture put together he stayed till pretty late (after 10 probably) to put it all together, he's hung shelving, his family took us to church every week till we got our own car, etc etc....
So anyway....shortly after we arrived, he went out of town and asked his counselor (kind of like an assistant) to look after my family in his absence. It was then we met the man I now call my dad...
This man got VERY close to my family very quickly and soon my children came to me and asked "Do you think Brother ----- would mind if we called him Grandpa?" He didn't mind one bit and soon after I was calling him Dad.
Over the last 18 months or so, we've grown very very close. He is my "go to" guy for just about everything and I find myself inspired by his counsel and words ALLLLLL the time but no time more inspirational than this....
It was February...he was taking me and Mini 2 to therapy and I was sitting in the truck with him waiting my turn to visit our counselor. We were talking about some of the fear I was living with due to the circumstances surrounding my divorce and I was in tears. After a rather long preface to ensure he didn't hurt my feelings he said something I now hang on to daily "My dear, when you can learn to trust Heavenly Father as much as He trusts you, you will no longer need to live in fear." It was like a kidney punch directly into my heart....my life has never been the same since.
I am so grateful for this man....unfortunately circumstances such as they are he is unable to to do so, if he could though, he would TOTALLY adopt me. I have never known a father's love until I met this man...my own father is a complete waste of space...neither he or my brother have any respect for him....I've never met him, despite having talked to him several times, and he didn't even recognize my brother 4 or 5 years ago when our grandfather died and he came to the funeral...only thing great my bio father has done is give my brother and I the gift of each other....my mom is a bum magnet...her current fiance is a pedophile to help you get the idea, so none of the men in her life are or were role-model/father material....
And then, thanks to an unexpected move, I gained a father figure and FINALLY know what that "daddy-daughter" relationship is all about and I must say I am HOOKED. I am a Daddy's girl BIG TIME!
My Dad inspires me because he, too, sees more in me than I often see in myself and carefully and thoughtfully says and does things that allow my BEST self to shine! He ALWAYS makes me feel better when I'm bummed...often in just a statement or two and his love and support have been a key component of our surviving our situation. My girls want to marry men just like him, and my son wants to grow up to be the kind of man he is.
There is NO blood connection to us, but he is my dad and he will tell you himself if you ask him. His love for my family has changed our lives and his influence makes us better people and we are so lucky to have him.
Daddy who are you are makes a difference EACH and EVERY day of our lives and it is an honor and privilege to know you and have you in our lives. Thank you so much for all you do and all you are, your grandchildren and I love you more than you will EVER know!
2 comments:
The love between a father and daughter is very special. I am ecstatic for you that you now get to experience it. Gives us just a tiny glimpse into the powerful love Heavenly Father has for us!
Thanks for leaving me in a puddle of tears... I am so happy for you that you now have a father! I have never had a dad... like one should have at all... oh how I wish I did... enjoy!
Post a Comment