She arrived as she did every Sunday. Her waist long hair was curled and the dress she wore made everyone forget the Tom boy that loved to play in the dirt and the mud. Her black patent shoes clicked on the sidewalk and when she reached the steps they were too wide for her little legs so she had to take two steps to get each one. A happy little girl with big blue eyes accentuated by her dark hair. When she smiled her dimples were so large they took up all of her delicate cheeks. Today the smile wasn't as big and her bounce was all but gone, because this day was hard for her. She was only five years old and she had never met her father. In all honesty she had met him, but she was only a year old when he left and she could not find one memory of him no matter how hard she tried. This year was a little harder than those that had passed before. This year she had finally understood what “adopted” meant. She loved being adopted. It made her more special than anyone else because she was hand-picked by her parents and they loved her even more. She believed this to be true of her Mommie who was always there, but where was her dad? The new understanding that there was another Daddy out there who she had never met. Made her wonder why they didn't love her almost everyday but today was harder than most, because it was Father's Day.
The steps to the church seemed wider today and her footsteps became heavier as she came closer to the glass doors. She knew inside would be little girls of all ages with their Daddies. A hard reminder that she had no one to celebrate. She turned the deepest green on this day when she watched others celebrate the men in their lives. When she finally reached the top of the steps the glass door swung open wide. She was greeted by one of the men in the church. He greeted her with a warm smile and a big hug. He told her how pretty she was and then reached in his pocket and pulled out a quarter. He told her that her name was written on that quarter and she needed to look hard to find it. She studied it hard as she walked away hoping to find her name. She was still amazed that he had found a quarter every week with her name on it, even though she could never find it. As she continued towards the foyer another man greeted her in the same way. Telling her she was prettier today than she ever had been before and giving her a big hug. The greetings continued as she traveled through the foyer each one expressing love and hugs. The little girl’s smile grew with each hug and the hole left by her absent fathers filled with the love expressed to her by each man in the church. They all knew her story, so they went out of their way to let this little girl know that it all men left. They let her know a thousand different ways that she was loved. The Sunday School lesson and the sermon topics were about fathers. As she listened to the sermon she gazed around the sanctuary at each man who loved her. Her gazed stopped at the stain glass circle at the front of the church. As she stared into the eyes of Jesus she knew in her heart she had a daddy in heaven that loved her. Even though she was only five years old she felt that love because of each man in the church showered her with unconditional love all the time. As she left the church she skipped down the steps full of the joy from those who loved her.
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