Dads, Date Your Daughters

Dad's, Date Your Daughters

God has a sense of humor for sure
He entrusted this clumsy man of sins
Girl-children for me to raise up right
Did I mention He sent me twins?

I'd been raisin' up boys long before
I ever had my first daughter
I could see right away this was different
I was gonna need me a spotter

Actually I would need several
They'd include God, other men and my wife
To ensure these one-day ladies
Would know their best start in life

It's not as if my wife was ignored
When bringing up our three boys
It's just that with girls being so tender
I'd need mom's insight and girl-raisin' poise

My bride warned me early on that girls
Might be inclined towards more emotion
Especially as they reached double-digits age
Requiring a different kind of devotion

My job was to be a solid, man-rock
Unwavering in my love and attention
A consistent, gentle, listenin, leanin'-post
Always there for their times of tension

Naturally I taught 'em to ride and rope
The same as I'd done with my sons
And well before reachin' their teens
They both were handy and safe with guns

I was blessed by some older men
Who'd struggled with their own daughter raisin'
They were a steady source of wise counsel
Reminding me girls needed love n' praisin'

So I planned special, alone time with them
At least once a week when they were small
I'd spend an hour in talk and play
Makin' sure they knew solid love and all

They worked hard alongside the family
Muckin' stalls, doctorin' and feedin'
They became capable, essential hands
Willingly doin' whatever was needin'

They became sweet-cuddlin' daddy's girls
Trustin' me more and more as they grew
At no time did I plan it that way
Heckamighty I had no earthly clue

As they approached their teen years
With the advice of some worthy, trusty men
I started dating them each individually
Preparin' my girls for the 'Big-When'

'When' boys would be asking them out
Wantin' to date these daughters of mine
They learned by the way I treated them
Their suitors had better have some spine

I'd open her car door at the restaurant
And help to set her at the table
I stood each time she left her seating
And tendered her chair though she was able

That they could do it all themselves
They knew in no uncertain terms
But treating girls with respect and honor
Their dignity, value and self-worth affirms

To date them each once a month
Required lotsa' focus to plan it out
But they knew without even thinking
That they were loved beyond a doubt

There's no question the time was well spent
My daughters are both married now
To a coupla' solid, noble, authentic men
Who display understandin', wife-know-how

The grandchildren who've come along
Bring joy to my wife and I every day
They're bein' raised in the way they should go
Seems I got somethin' right along the way

by Rik Goodell

© 2022. All rights reserved

I am grateful to David Graham for his allowing me to, again, post his skilled, western art alongside mine. If you do a search here on my website for "The Fencin' Crew" and "Teachin' Without Words" or "Handles and Horse Thieves", among many others, you'll find more paintings of his that have inspired my poetry.

To see more of his work, go to his website: https://www.davidgrahamart.com/