Ask any adult woman about their father, one who still calls their father “daddy,” and you will hear stories of immense love and respect. I have been blessed to be married to one such “daddy” – Steve.  Both Morgan and her oldest sister always called him “daddy,” and they absolutely adored him.

Blood doesn’t always make you a “daddy.”  Another person has always called Steve “daddy.”  My niece never knew her own father, so ever since she was a small child, Steve treated her just like one of our own daughters.  She loved him very much.  And just like our own 2 girls, she made him father’s day cards, always got excited to see him and never got off the phone without saying she loved him.  And to this very day my niece still ALWAYS calls Steve “daddy.”  Even as a mother herself, and almost 40 years old, to her Steve is “daddy.”

I have met many friends over the years that still call their fathers “daddy.”  What a beautiful thing – I love hearing them talk about their childhoods and all the wonderful memories they have.  It really does take someone special to be a daddy.  A person that really loves spending time with their children.  Someone that is always there for them, someone they can count on.  Someone who knows there is no greater gift in this world then a child…that makes a “daddy.”  One of my dear friends just lost her “daddy” to cancer – it was painful and cruel.  She is hurting so much and yet every time she speaks about him she smiles (with tears in her eyes) and you can hear the love in her voice for the man she will always call “daddy.”

You are probably wondering why in the world I am going on and on about this.  Well because I just remembered something that happened about a year after Morgan was killed.  A woman contacted me to say that she was convinced Morgan killed herself because she had read that the last thing Morgan said to Steve was, “I love you daddy.”  Now I have heard a lot of crazy things from people over the years – but when I heard this woman say that, I felt a wave of sadness for her…what kind of childhood had this woman had that would make her think that?  It was just all too sad.

For Morgan to say, “I love you daddy” was completely normal behavior for Morgan.  I know for many other girls and women this would be normal behavior as well, and for those who can not understand it, I feel a deep sadness.  Unconditional love comes from the heart, it’s what every child deserves, but not every child receives.  What a wonderful world this would be if everyone could know, and understand, unconditional love.