All in Letters

I saw your post about your project.  Thank you!  This is an awesome idea!!! I have lots to say to the men I know are good fathers, who love their children, whether they live with them full time or not.  As a woman who essentially grew up without a father and who, as a teacher, has had many students with divorced parents, I have lots of suggestions...

I had a conversation with a wonderful friend of mine named Susan Clay. We were discussing "forgiveness" and the way that a father could ask his daughter for that gift. While I was getting caught up in the many levels of debate and self-defense that occur when we are in the wrong, her suggested comment was so simple and perfect...

I wish he had shown his devotion by staying with me for a whole day occasionally rather than sticking around for a few hours or not at all.  But mostly, it's what I instinctively felt from him that caused me the pain. And that was this feeling that he wanted to be somewhere else or could only 'spare' a few hours...

My advice.... call every night to say goodnight, just like you were there. Leave a message if she doesn’t pick up or text. Send text messages frequently. Ask questions about her life, have special nights where you and her only go do something special. Daddy/daughter date nights. If you are blending a family and you ask her input, take it. If you give her a choice on something in the... 

My parents divorced when I was around the age of 8, my mother moved us from Texas to Florida, giving my Father visitation during the summers. My Mother did everything she could to portray him as a terrible Father who loved us but didn’t really care enough to do anything. Looking back now, she contradicted herself most often trying to make it look like...

Too bad there is not a guide on how to be a great parent, in this case a great Dad. I’m a single Mom with an 11year old son, and it is the best, most rewarding job I have ever had in my life. It is also the hardest job I have ever had. One of the most important things I want to teach my son is...

What do I as a daughter wish my father had known?  That I missed him more than I, as a young teen, knew how to articulate, and I still do, now that he is gone.That I wanted his attention, love, approval and ADVICE, but didn't know how to ask for that either.That I was stuck in rebellion, breaking away from his and my mother's influence, and it wasn't personal against him...

To the dads reading this, I applaud you, don’t give up. Really, I could end there.

What an honor to be part of such an incredible project.  My perspective offered to you comes from a daughter who granted her father’s deathbed plea for forgiveness, and a mother standing in the gap for her daughters and their dad...