Life is short.

We never know when our moment will come.  We have visions of our children growing up, seeing them go from babies to little girls; from pre-teens to prom queens; from college to careers; from corporate leaders to mothers.  And all along the way, we are there listening, teaching, guiding…and watching.  We live through them, feeling their happiness and joy; their dreams and desires; their pain and sorrow.  We will always be there for them, in every way possible, for as long as we can.

But what if…  What if the unthinkable happens? What if we are gone too soon? And we leave them…  I am older than the average father of two pre-school aged children, so I probably think about it more than most fathers.  I don’t dwell on it or lose sleep because of it, but I do think about it.

I think about what that means to me today, and what it will mean tomorrow.  What I am trying to say is that I realize how much I need to “be here” in the moment and be truly engaged with their lives today. But I want my girls to remember me “tomorrow.”  So I have been thinking for a long time about how to leave behind reminders of me, their Daddy.  I have seen people create email accounts for their children and write them daily.  Similarly, I have seen picture diaries and social media pages.  All of those are great ideas to me and I am struggling with what I want to do myself with those ideas.

I want my girls to know who I am and who I was. Years from now – many years from now I hope – I want them to be able to “see me.”  I want them to “hear my voice”.  I want them to look back and remember how much I love them.  I know that all starts with today and continues every day of our lives telling them – showing them how much I love them, and how special they are to me.

So I will eventually figure out how to leave them writings and pictures, and most importantly I think, my voice.  Having someplace to read, see, and hear me from time to time, and maybe in hard times, may just be the one thing they need at that moment.  I am still not sure of what method to use or how often to “post” these things…

But what I am sure of is this – life is short, so you have to enjoy every moment, every laugh, every smile, every “I love you, Daddy.”  Because as much as technology helps capture the many moments and thoughts we share, there is no substitute for our own memories.

At least that’s…
This Dad’s View

Do you think about “tomorrow”? Do you have any special way you are leaving behind memories?