Dearest Erin, today is your second birthday. Hold on, I have something in my eye.

Rev. Jonathan Faulkner

Dear Erin,

Today you turn two years old. Where have the days gone, the hours, the minutes, the seconds? They all seem to be swallowed up in time and lay mostly forgotten in the backs of our conscious. Except those moments which remind us why we love being parents, love being your parents. Like this morning when we came in to get you up singing Happy Birthday and you smiled your biggest smile and then, when we finished, sweetly said: “I Love that song.” Or the first time you took my hand when you were a baby. It’s probably wrapped around there still. Or the times we have played in the snow, pulling you on the sled, me, trying to teach you how to make snow angels, while you are laughing at me.

This journey of fatherhood has been all parts amazing, all parts hard, all parts rewarding and all parts terrifying at the same time. You sit there that first time you hold your child, and you think to yourself: “Can I do this, can I be this little girl’s daddy? Am I capable of doing this? I know you mom has asked the same questions over these first two years, but somehow, we have done it, by the grace of God. Now, as we watch you interact with your friends, as we converse with you and you with us, you are precious to us and we love you with our full hearts. Whatever this life brings, that is not going to change, we will be there next to you to walk with you as mommy and daddy, never forget that.

This year, I have a few hopes for you. I hope that you continue to explore and learn about the world which God has placed you in. I pray you get to play in the snow more and go to the park in the summer. I know that this pandemic has made it harder for all of us to get out, but I hope that once your sister is born in June, we can take you to the pool and hang out at the park and have family cookouts with the church again. But I also pray that you will not let anything dampen that infectious spirit of yours, that you will continue to grow as the kind and loving person you already starting to become. I pray also that you may begin asking us questions about the Bible songs you have been listening to. That you might continue to sing with that beautiful voice of yours, that you might continue to make up songs at the piano and sing along with the hymns at church. That you might one day know the joy of your father in heaven who loves you, and that the promise of your baptism may be fulfilled through Christ.

Dearest daughter, there is so much more you are going to experience in this world. Trials and tribulations, pains and disappointments (greater than not getting your snack exactly when you want it). But no matter what, you are loved and cherished by me, your dad, your mother and most importantly your heavenly father who knitted you together in your mother’s womb. We love you Erin, have a Happy Birthday.

Love,

Dad.