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Hey Dad,

You know, there's just something very pink and tinkerbellish about girls. Sure, there's also a ton of unbridled emotion and changing of clothes that goes hand in hand with having a girl, but there's just something wonderful about daughters. My daughter Katherine (10) has proven that to me more than once in the last two weeks.

The first time happened on a beautiful, fall night when we were still able to eat dinner on our screened-in porch. We were halfway through dinner when Katherine asked a question, and I responded in a fairly normal way—I thought. Katherine was hit with a wave of emotion and burst into tears. I was touched by her brokenness, and in my softest, most fatherly voice I said, "I didn't mean it that way, Katherine. I'm so sorry …" Her tears stopped and later that evening she walked up to me and apologized for her outburst, and we hugged and talked.

A few days later, I walked past her and she gave me a funny look. "Dad," she said, "can you dance with me?"

I have to admit that I was taken back by her question—she's never asked me to dance before. But without hesitation, I put my arms around her and swept her off her feet to giggles of delight.

Then, last Thursday, a tornado touched down just a few miles from our home. The radio blared its emergency test warning—but it wasn't a test. Katherine was a mess, and she's never even seen The Wizard of Oz. The entire night she clung to me and wanted to hear my words of assurance.

And lastly, she proved it to me again when our whole family went to the mall recently. As I walked to the pretzel booth, Katherine walked with me with her arm around my waist—like a teenager with her boyfriend. It felt a little weird, but it grew on me as we walked. In fact, by the time we got to the pretzel place, I was kind of bummed that she removed her arm.

Okay, so here's the point, Dad. Our daughters find comfort, security, and love in us. They need us to sweep them off their feet from time to time, talk gently, and try to understand their emotions. If we're not there for them, some other guy with baggy jeans will be.

So, Dad, be there. Make the time to hold your daughter on your lap, ask her about her day, and put your arm around her waist like you're a teenager and she's your girlfriend—because she is.

You 'da Dad,

© 2007 Todd Wilson. Used by permission.

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