I “heard” the love
When I was growing up, I do not recall hearing the words “I love you” from
my father. When your father never says them to you when you are a child, it
gets tougher and tougher for him to say those words as he gets older. To tell
the truth, I could not honestly remember when I had last said those words to
him either. Then, I decided to set my ego aside and make the first move.
After some hesitation, in our next phone conversation I blurted out the
words, “Dad ... I love you!”
There was a silence at the other end and he awkwardly replied, “Well, same
back at ya!”
I chuckled and said, “Dad, I know you love me so much”.
Fifteen minutes later my mother called and nervously asked, “Paul, is
everything okay?”
A few weeks later, Dad concluded our phone conversation with the words,
“Paul, I love you”. I was at work during this conversation, and the tears were
rolling down my cheeks as I finally “heard” the love that Dad did give me.
As we both sat there in tears we realized that this special moment had taken
our father and son relationship to a new level.
A short while after this special moment, my father fortunately escaped death
following heart surgery. Many times since, I have pondered the thought, if
that time I did not take the first step and Dad did not survive the surgery,
maybe I extremely regret because I would have never “heard” the love.
- Paul Barton
Never part without saying loving words for them to think of during your
absence.
