Of Shiny Knights and First Valentines

Reflecting on life, as I often do, I thought of my daughter who I met for the first time last year. She is 23 and I did not know her until last year. I was disappointed that I only just met her. There was so much of her life I missed. I may be her father, but I never got the chance to be her dad. I missed a grand opportunity.

A child’s first hero should always be the dad. The guy who can lift anything, reach anything, open anything, kill any bug, and knows a lot of stuff. As they grow up they will come to realize dad cannot do everything and does not know as much as first thought. But in some special place inside the child remains a memory that dad was once a hero in their eyes. I missed out on that experience with my daughter.

I would not want the admiration of hero worship, but to that little tyke a hero is needed. A shining example of what is good and safe and right in the world. It does not really matter that like most dads I was clueless and learned a lot along the way. But it does matter that Dad was there.

For little girls, dads are the knights, brave and strong. The hero that leads the way makes all things right with her little world. The very rare dad is able to maintain that place in his daughter’s eyes into her teen years. The brave knight who teaches his daughter her worth by treating her often as his little princess. Her value of herself is reflected in the image her dad imparts to her. She should ever remain ‘his princess’; even after her hair turns gray.

Daddy’s little princess will measure all men by the example dad sets. That little girl will grow up looking for what she found in her dad. She may grow up, love others, and marry the man of her dreams, but there is a special place that remains in her heart for ‘her daddy.’

A father should do well to remember he will always have two great loves of his life: the woman he married and the woman he helped raise. A dad should do all he can to ensure both always know just how special they are to him and how much they are loved by him.

Daddy’s little princess’ first valentine should always come from him. He should find a way to always let her know just how valuable she is and how important she is to him.

Time is so fleeting. If you keep breathing long enough, time will pass you by and your opportunity to raise a princess and seal your heart in hers has sped quickly past and is gone. That is where I find myself now. I would that my daughter had the chance to know me as her shining knight and her first valentine. I cannot change the past. I can only impact the future. So I am going to find ways starting now to let her know she has a shining knight and a valentine who freely gives her his heart and chooses to love her just because she is.

To you dads who are just starting with your daughters, I encourage you to never let her see you as other than her shiny knight and her first valentine. Now to those like me and you missed some years and opportunity, start now. Get out the Brasso. Shine up your armor and be her brave, current valentine, her dad.