Daddy-Daughter Relationships Are Important

The saying goes something like this: “There’s nothing quite as special as a love between a father and his daughter,” or “…between a mother and her son.”

As a proud parent of each gender, I can fully attest that those sayings are only partially true. While I certainly possess a deep love for our children, I don’t have any extra special bond with my daughters that makes it superior to that of the relationship with my son. I love them all equally, and there is no unspoken or unexplainable sparkle that makes the daddy-daughter dynamic superior to another.

But I will say this: My daughters and I share a distinction that my son and I can never replicate. It doesn’t make our relationship more special. It only makes it different. 

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And that obvious distinction is that I’m not female, and my daughters are not male. We bring certain characteristics specific to our gender, and we can never experience the other – except through each other. That makes our relationship unique, to be sure.

As a male, I greatly appreciate the feminine traits our girls bring to our family. I notice that femininity in my wife, and in my mom and the sisters with whom I grew up. But to witness our daughters moving from different stages of play, styles in clothes, and probably someday to new relationships that may shape their lives – it’s all new to me.

Men's and women’s basketball may look essentially the same. But any coach from kids to the pros will tell you that they coach male and female players a little bit different. Their players’ attitudes are different. The locker room has a different vibe. Even the game is different. So it goes with the daddy-daughter relationship.

The bond is also unique is because a dad is the first male his girl will meet and, hopefully, admire.

When we meet anyone of the opposite sex, we encounter humanity. We see life through a different lens. A boy can certainly look up to and emulate his dad, but he’s also male and probably shares some of the same masculine characteristics that will be fully developed someday.

A daddy-daughter relationship is almost like a real dress rehearsal for life. She’s getting to relate to the opposite sex from the get-go. That’s valuable experience and makes any dad’s job an important one!

I’m lucky and blessed to have daughters in order to witness the feminine side of child rearing, and for them to witness me as a male – a father figure. 

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So while I’ll never tell anyone we have a bond that’s more special than anyone else, I can at least say it’s unique. Here’s to all the daddy-daughter relationships that make the world go ‘round.