In some ways it seems like it was just yesterday.
It’s 5:15 a.m. on a Saturday and the alarm is going off. After a busy week at work it would be so nice to sleep in, BUT, there’s a softball tournament today. You go downstairs to shower and wake up the little softball player who moans and says, “Five more minutes!” You have to pack the cooler, make sure she’s got her gear and cleats and that you’ve got enough water, Gatorade and sunflower seeds. It’s off to Dunkin’ and then the 45-minute drive to some town that decided to host a tournament this weekend. Once there you’ll spend the next 6 or 8 hours cheering her on as the team plays three games then you’re back at it tomorrow where they play and play until they lose or win it all.
And then just when you think it will never end… it does.
It all came flooding back to me this weekend.
On Saturday, my youngest daughter, Kathryn, married her best friend…and yes…daddy might have shed a tear or two.
The wedding had been a long time in the planning stages… what with that pesky pandemic we all had to go through. Kat and Josh met a few years ago while they were working at Olympia Sports. When they started getting serious, Kat told Josh she didn’t want to get engaged until she was done with college. Respecting that, Josh waited until the senior year was over and the popped the question. And then they had Covid to deal with.
Kat talks about how Covid took away her last year of college. She was doing her clinical round with the trainers at Stonehill College. (Kat is an Athletic Trainer now working at Norton High School.) She went to virtual classes. She often talks about how Covid took away her senior year, her chance to walk across the stage, her job for a few months, and a vacation to Disney World. That was when she decided she was not going to let it ruin her wedding so they planned the date for two years out. Saturday was the day.
I found myself sitting in the church during the ceremony listening closely to the vows and really realizing that my little girl is not so little anymore. She and Josh were committing to the same things her mother and I have lived through the past 41 years. And then as I watched her throughout the night I was amazed (and immensely proud) of the woman she’s become. And where did my shy little girl go?
Priscilla and I will always remember a softball game when Kat was 8 or 9. She was a pitcher and she hit a batter. Once we checked on the girl we went to the mound because we thought our shy little Kathryn might be upset that she hit someone. We asked, “Are you okay?” Kat replied, “Yeah. Tell her, ‘next time, get out of the way.’” She always was a quiet little girl… until game time.
To say I’m proud of this young lady is an understatement. I’m proud of all of my children but I’m so happy that she has found her passion and has a house, a puppy and now a husband.
We had our father/daughter dance the other night.
Kat selected a Tim McGraw song for us to dance to.
My Little Girl
Gotta hold on easy as I let you go
Gonna tell how much I love you
Though you think you already know
I remember I thought you looked like an angel
Wrapped in pink, so soft and warm
You’ve had me wrapped around your finger
Since the day you were born
You’re beautiful, baby, from the outside in
Chase your dreams, but always know the road
That’ll lead you home again
Go on, take on this whole world
But to me you know you’ll always be
My little girl
When you were in trouble, that crooked little smile
Could melt my heart of stone
Now look at you, I’ve turned around
And you’ve almost grown
Sometimes you’re asleep, I whisper, I love you
In the moonlight at your door
As I walk away, I hear you say
Daddy, love you more
You’re beautiful, baby, from the outside in
Chase your dreams, but always know the road
That’ll lead you home again
Go on, take on this whole world
But to me you know you’ll always be
My little girl
Someday, some boy will come and ask me for your hand
But I won’t say yes to him unless I know
He’s the half that makes you whole
He has a poet’s soul
And the heart of a man’s man
I know he’ll say that he’s in love
But between you and me
He won’t be good enough
You’re beautiful, baby, from the outside in (outside in)
Chase your dreams, but always know the road
That’ll lead you home again
Go on, take on this whole world
But to me you know you’ll always be
My little girl
Yeah, I think I’ve got something in my eye. Tissue please?
So a new adventure begins and I can’t wait to see where it leads you.
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