Father's Day Gift

I am not, nor do I ever pretend to be, the toughest guy around. Thus, it came as no surprise to me that I was very touched tonight by something Amelia (perhaps with a little help from her teachers) did at school. I received my first ever Father's Day Gift. It was a picture of Mia in a frame that says "My heart belongs to my Dad". As you can guess, it wasn't the gift itself that got to me. It was the underlying sentiment of the saying. Until recently, Mia has mostly been living without real interaction and understanding of the world around her. In the past few weeks, she has really started to become present. When she looks at you, there is a purpose inside those eyes. When you enter the room, she takes notice. Her smiles have become reactionary instead of reflexive. It has truly been an amazing transformation. So, today as I looked at that photo and thought about what it meant, I was quite taken aback. This precious little baby's heart does belong to me(and I suppose to Meggan a little as well :)). I am the person in her world that she will look to for security, for inspiration, and for unconditional love. Frankly, having barely known my own father, I'm not sure what to do with such a ferocious responsibility. So, I am going to follow the best course of action I know of - to have faith that God has entrusted me with this little girl because He believes in me and to know, either secretly or not so secretly, that truth be told.... it is my heart that belongs to Mia, not the other way around.