A Girl Needs Her Dad

I completely stumbled upon these pictures last night and they reduced me to tears. The ugly uncontrollable kind. They are all of my dad when he was serving his mission in Northern California in 1962 and 63. I can't remember seeing many pictures of my dad with hair! By the time he met my mom, the hair on his head at least, was already fading fast. I stared at these pictures forever as the tears poured down my face.
























Oh how I love this man! And oh how I miss him immensely! So much so that it aches within the pit of my stomach and closes up my throat making it hard to breath. When he left this life almost 6 years ago, he took so much of me and of our family with him. But I know he went to send my girls to me, to prepare a way for all of us in heaven and to do the work of the Lord. But knowing all that doesn't make it any easier that my life here would be so different if he was still here with me. If i could only just have one more great hug, one more pep talk, one more joke. Its almost unbearable for me to think about him with my girls. He was a fantastic dad, but more importantly he was a phenomenal grandpa. Those girls would be loved and spoiled so much more then they already are if their Pakka was here.

What does comfort me is the great joy I can find when I remind myself to have an eternal perspective. The gospel of Jesus Christ provides me so much hope that I will live with him again. I know families can be together forever and that is what helps me dry my tears. So until then I have to live my life in a way that would make both him and my Heavenly Father proud. I think the first step to do that would be to love and adore my girls. It's exactly what he would do. Just with alot less hair.
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