Your Daddy

Dear Lucas, dear Emily,

Your daddy was The Greatest. Do you know that? I'll bet you do. He could draw dragons that practically breathed fire off the paper. He gave the biggest, best bear hugs of anybody in the whole wide world. He could make superheroes leap over tall buildings in a single bound. Sometimes he was a superhero (in fact, I think he was, secretly, ALL the time).

Your daddy knew how to make anybody laugh. He was that silly. Sometimes, he pretended to speak in French when he was crossing the street ("crossez-le!"), sometimes he would pretend he was Luke Skywalker holding a light saber (or hanging out with Han Solo & Chewy). Sometimes, he would get the sillies and laugh until he fell out of his chair (he called it a No Life Attack). Other times, he would pretend he was mowing the lawn when he danced, or pretend he was a washing machine (swirling his arms round and round and shaking his bum, laughing). He was a big, silly goof.

And he was also the most loyal, devoted friend a person could ever have.

When he was a teenager, your daddy loved movie The Princess Bride. I think he liked to pretend that he was Westley, very noble and heroic, and determined, with great courage, to do the right thing for the woman he loved. He loved Princess Buttercup. At first, Westley was a little quiet around Princess Buttercup; whenever she would ask him to do something, like bring her a cup of water, he would reply, "As you wish." After a little while, Princess Buttercup began to realize that every time Westley was saying "As you wish," what he really meant was, "I love you". And she started to love him back, because she knew that he was true, and good, and loyal...and perfect for her.

Your daddy and your mommy loved each other like that: beautifully, purely, devotedly, and in a way that made everybody else around them think they were a little like Westley and Princess Buttercup: magical, and destined to be together forever, somehow, in their hearts.

Then they had the two of you, and that love grew even more magical, devoted, and sure. I have never seen your daddy happier than when holding each of you. And he was a happy guy.

There might be lots of time why you wonder why your daddy isn't here, or where he's gone to. You know what? We all wonder that, and sometimes we feel like crying because we miss him so much. Sometimes we do cry. It's okay for you to be a little mad sometimes (maybe even really mad), and to wish that he was still here. I wish that too, so does everybody who ever loved him (and that's a LOT of people.)

But you know what, your daddy will always be a part of you. And all of those people who loved him, who love you & your Mommy, are here for you, for the rest of your lives, to help tell you stories about your daddy, to help you to know some of the little and big and wonderful things he did to make our lives better.

I promise both of you that if you ever, ever want to talk about your Daddy, or to hear some stories about what he was like when he was a kid, a teenager, a student, or to just come and spend some time together, I am always here for you two (and your Mommy!).

Love,

Megan (or Auntie Rockhead, as your daddy would've had you call me...)