Once, there was a little girl whose daddy loved her more than anything in the world. She didn’t understand that very well though. She never really tried either. She just assumed that he did, and that he’d always take care of her. Then he gave her a present. He knew that she didn’t really know how much he loved her. And he knew that she wasn’t ready for this present. But maybe just maybe on a much smaller scale she’d realize how much he loved her. And she loved her present. And it was a love that she’d never really experienced before. But instead of thanking her daddy for this gift, she simply forgot he was there. Even when the present started to break, she tried with her awkward child hands to fix it and it only broke into more pieces. Then she went to her father crying, asking him to fix it. But it wasn’t meant to be fixed. And she cried. And it hurt more than she ever knew possible. And the worst part was knowing that she didn’t even know her father anymore.

So she asked him not to give her any more presents until she grew up a little bit. She just seemed to break everything she touched anyway. So he gave her presents she couldn't break if she tried. He gave her thunderstorms and he gave her green grass. He gave her a song to sing and he gave her stars to wish on. And her heart was glad again. And she learned to love her daddy by giving back all the presents that he gave her and they were happy together.

But still she wondered. And he told her it was ok to ask. So she asked. And she waited. And everyday she learned to love her daddy a little bit more. And then one day when she was least expecting it, he answered. And she was happy. And she was scared. And she was thankful. And she was apprehensive. But he just kept telling her that it was ok. That she wasn’t the little girl from so long ago. That he loved her, and that because he loved her, he wanted to give her something else to love. And so with her awkward fingers she took it from her father.

And everyday she learned more and more how to love her daddy with the amazing present he gave her. And she was glad. And he was glad. She was still a little scared. Some days more than others. And she was still thankful. She’d lie in bed at night and wonder how her daddy ever loved her so much that he gave her the thunderstorms and the green grass, and all of the songs and all of the stars. And now this. She was still apprehensive. Because she can’t see tomorrow. And she doesn’t want to break it this time. But this time it’s different. Instead of holding it in her hands and hiding it away, she gave it right back to her father. And loved him more than she ever had before. And he was happy. And she was happy. She knew that as long as she kept his strong hands wrapped around her awkward fingers holding the present, she’d never drop it. And for the first time in her life, she had peace.