So today my favorite daughter was accepted into her first choice for college. This means that next year will be the first one in almost twenty years that she isn't at home on a daily basis. My heart swells with pride over this honor. She works very hard at her grades along with any other academic project. My heart also hurts at the thought of her being three hours from me. I was lucky enough to be there at her very first breath. One of the nurses let me slip back into an area where she was cleaned up. It was my hands that changed the very first diaper. There is a closet at home that contains hours of video of her first year. It was so bad that she was often videotaped while pretty much doing nothing! To paraphrase the great Lou Gehrig, "Today I am the luckiest dad on this planet."



I suppose that my mind will never understand why a man would not wish to be a father. Being absent was and is not an option for me with my two children. This is in no way any type of profession of perfection. God knows my limits in being a dad. I also know that there comes a time for children to grow up to set out on their own. Shouldn't that age be raised to about thirty or so? Letting go does not at all mean not holding on. To me they are two sides of the same coin. No father with any amount of love for his child would stop holding on with his heart even when it is time to go. My case will obviously have some differences. Though my daughter is beginning her journey into adulthood it will not be the same for her brother. I am probably always going to hold on to him since there may be no letting go.



Does it occur to you that even some of the best moments in life may be bittersweet? Exciting times often are an indication of change. We graduate from school only to face a new reality. We perhaps get married but face the adjustment of constant companionship. Maybe we land that perfect job that leads us to relocate. Like it or not, our world is constantly changing. It's what we hold onto or let go with reluctance that defines who we are. Through all of this we can be assured of the biblical truth that we also have a Father who holds us close. God doesn't even have to let us go when we belong to Him. Could it be that His heart mirrors ours when it comes to His committed love? It seems to me that He may even have some level of excitment that one of His own is moving forward in the journey. God and I are both very proud dads tonight. How can it get much better than that?

Bro. Trey