A Letter to All the Father's Out There

Dad,

I was born a daddy’s girl. I can imagine myself as a baby wanting only to be held by you. As I grew up, you surrounded me with a protection that inevitably bonds us. I noticed as a little girl that you weren’t always around, and I missed your presences in the house. Nonetheless, you’ve supported me through my best times and my worst, and for that I will always be grateful.

You have this way about you, the confidence to say what is on your mind, the bluntness of your spoken thoughts. Growing up, I was embarrassed, yelling at you to stop. Sometimes you would laugh at my clear sense of shame that brought a red hue to my cheeks, but at other times, you would continue despite my begging and pleading.
The thought never crossed my mind, as a young girl sitting in the middle of a restaurant covering my eyes as you spoke, that I would become you. Your characteristics, both internal and external have been passed down to me whether I like it or not.

And this is the part where you get to gloat. You always do when you are right. But I can’t do anything about it except sit here and thank you. Growing up around someone as outspoken as you has made me a confident young woman. I have turned into someone who doesn’t care if the person next to me looks at me through judgmental eyes. I don’t sugar coat my thoughts, they come to my tongue uninhibited by self-consciousness.

Because of you, I will never be afraid to raise my hand. Because of you, I will walk with a stride that tells people “I won’t take your crap.” Because of you, I have become an independent woman who doesn’t need to look to someone else to do my dirty work. I believe that being raised by a man who isn’t afraid of being rejected has made me the strong, powerful woman I am today.

I thank you for being the way you are, for allowing me to become the way I am.

Forever yours,

Your daughter

--Jackie DiBiase