Daddy's Girl

Daddy’s Girl… I suppose that would be a good description of me. Although that may seem strange to some who knew the particulars of my growing up.
I was born when my Daddy was 55! Yes, unbelievable as it is, I am finally older than my Daddy was when I was born. My Mom was 16 years his junior. My parents lived in a remote mountain town without many employment opportunities so when my Daddy’s business failed and then other avenues of employment dried up Daddy left Greenville, and his family, to work. I don’t ever remember living with my parents together, but Daddy came to visit occasionally and I was always so excited when he did.
I recognize now Mom’s herculean effort not to let any of the frustration she felt at being a single parent and raising 3 girls alone affect us, but never made me feel that I came from a “broken home”. We weren’t broken; we just didn’t live together; that’s how I saw it.
I can’t explain why, given these circumstances, I felt so close to my Daddy as a child. I do, however, have some explanations for why I can feel that closeness now even though he has been gone for over 38 years. I never doubted my parents’ unconditionally love for me and death has not removed that knowledge! I’ve been blessed with the gifts of faith and discerning of Spirits (see 1 Corinthians 12:1, 4-11) and I feel his love and presence through the veil that separates us.
Then there are more tangible reminders that I am Jake’s daughter: fair, sensitive skin, a pronounced nose and high cholesterol, just to name a few. Two of the three (sorry, the nose is just there!) have been dealt with in amazing ways (well, maybe some would disagree, but I think they are amazing!)
I got a call this morning from the doctor’s office to tell me that my cholesterol was down to 132 (wee-haw, hip-hip-hurray and thank goodness for modern medicine!!)! I’ve been struggling to get this number under 200 since 2003. It finally took a Rx for Lipitor (insert commercial here) to get this amazing number because oatmeal everyday and other things just weren’t getting anywhere.
The other solution to my fair, sensitive skin has been solved in a less dramatic way, eventually. I’ve been going to a dermatologist this year with very sad results; most Rx just aggravates rather than alleviates the problem. About a month ago Gordon brought home some Sunbreeze Healing Balm that has helped the dry patches on my face, but hasn’t totally gotten rid of them. Anytime I try to use any lotions, even those for sensitive skin, it makes those patches worse. So a couple of days ago I thought, “what can I use to moisturize my skin without aggravating it?” The thought popped into my head, “Go natural… try olive oil!” So for the last two days I’ve tried that and hey, it’s working! The redness is going away and my face doesn’t feel shrink-wrapped!
It is funny how these simple physical characteristics remind me that, yes; I am my Daddy’s girl, in so many ways!