The Best Husband is a Good Father

As an American serving as a Relief Society President in London, I have sat beside or

across from my sisters and listen to their stories with intense interest. Some begin in far-away places like Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, or the Philippines. Some begin very nearby. All of the stories end here – or rather – are paused here – in London, playing themselves out. Some of my friends struggle at present, but all dream of abundance for themselves and their children. Far too many have sad experience with the men in their lives: with the fathers of their children. The worst of these men have abandoned their own families.

The disappearance or disengagement of biological fathers leaves wounds in the hearts of women and children that bleed for a long time afterward no matter what language you cry in. Whether the absent father is a distant memory or a fresh sorrow, he has killed something instead of giving life.

We can hardly believ

e that during one week this August, the baby of our bunch will be turning 22, graduating from BYU, and will become wife to her best friend of five years. Her father will lavish time, attention, and his hard-earned money on her, like he has since she was a tiny girl with ringlets. She used to make him bend over for a kiss and call him "Beastie", the fairy-tale prince, but it’s much easier for her to reach his cheek now. On each of her special occasions this summer, all made possible by her father, she will wrap herself around him and whisper, “Thank you, Daddy. Thank you.”

Thank you honey, thank you. Do you really know what it means to me as a woman to have the father of my children committed to their well-being? Can a man appreciate the depth of devotion his wife feels toward him when he gets down on the floor to tussle with the children? Does the male brain comprehend a woman’s delight when a big man sits a little child on his lap; when he opens his wallet to pay for that new pair of new shoes; when he accompanies her to parent night or makes certain the kitchen cupboards are full? Does he appreciate the security he creates when she is able to trust his discipline? Can he know that she is his forever IF forever, he will protect not only her, but the little people that are an extension of her?

We will give our girl away this August, and although my man says he is looking forward to having me truly to himself for the first time, I know he will cry just the same because he loves being a daddy.

"...men who accept the challenge of good fathering report that they come away with increased marital fulfillment. Their effort comes back to them many times over in the admiration of their wives." ~ Dr. Harley, His Needs, Her Needs

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Mona muses ev