The Opportunity Of A Lifetime
If there’s one thing that will help you understand what the feeling your father in law had when you married his daughter, it’s having a daughter of your own. In my case, two.
We were 23 when we got married. 22 when we got engaged and an even younger 22 when I asked him permission to marry his daughter. I was a BABY.
But for some crazy reason, I was given an opportunity.
An opportunity that absolutely changed my life and led to the birth of two girls of MINE and a love I never knew existed.
And that’s where this story gets good.
Thats where the reality really hits.
The love that I have for these girls, is the love that my HE has for his daughter, my wife.
I look at my girls and think how in the world could I ever give them away and trust someone else to take care of them.
I’m their super hero, their teacher, their mentor, their advocate. It almost feels impossible for anyone else to fill those shoes.
And It’s that realization that is my motivation.
It might sound funny that my father in law is a huge factor of my motivation. Most of the time that kind of relationship is filled with fear or insecurity. Maybe the feeling of not living up to expectations or a even resentment.
But if you knew him, you’d know it’s quite the opposite.
This is a man that has comfortably provided for 6 kids.
He’s slalom water skied well into his 60s
I don’t think there’s a single grey hair on his FULL head of hair.
You can blind fold him, spin him around, drive him to the middle of nowhere and he’ll STILL tell you which way is north. And probably a few landmarks and fun facts as well.
This is a man that’s traveled around the world, lived overseas, built homes in other countries, road centuries on his bike and served the Lord with all his heart.
I can’t even count how many times he’s helped me hang floating shelves (who came up with those things anyway), moved furniture, lent me tools for honey do’s or walked me through step by step how to fix something around the house no matter how basic and elementary it is, with the absolute utmost amount of patience one could ask for.
He’s a man of many skills. But those skills are just surface level attributes. What sets him apart is the love that radiates from him.
Within seconds of meeting him, you feel at ease and comfortable. He’s calm, cool and collected ALWAYS and it’s that confidence in who HE is that makes YOU feel confident when you’re with him.
He’s not just a father in law to me, he’s a second dad and a beacon of light to follow after. He’s a model of what a father should be and the ULTIMATE grandfather (Pops) to my precious girls.
To say that he’s a huge factor of my motivation and who I want to be as a father and husband is an understatement. Rarely do people have mentors in their lives that provide such inspiration and a clear blueprint to who you aim to emulate. But when you find those people, do three things.
- Tell them how much they mean to you
- Learn from them
- Work to one day be that role for someone else.
Each day I am thankful for the opportunity that I was given long ago. The trust that was imparted to me.
My hope and prayer for every other girl dad out there is that you have a father in law as incredible as mine.
And when that day comes that YOU are the one giving the permission; remember the opportunity that was given to you and step into the role of a father in law they can too can admire and are motivated by.