SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (ANS) -- It seems like it was only yesterday that I was teaching our sons how to ride bikes, attending their soccer games, going on outings with the Indian Guides or Boy Scouts, and sharing wonderful family times in our tent trailer during summer camping trips.

Now our boys are out of the house and it’s very quiet.

Where did those years go?

Fathers, you only have one opportunity to make a difference when your children are under your roof, and it’s very brief. There are not too many men who get to the end of their lives and say, “You know, I wish I’d spent more time at the office.”

Sometime, before it’s too late, hug your son or daughter, tell them you love them and are proud of them. Think about even writing a letter to your child that expresses your feelings toward them.

Do you know how rare it is to have a letter from dad? A few days ago, Maria Shriver’s brother, Mark Shriver, appeared on Piers Morgan’s program and gave a tribute to their father, Sargent Shriver. Mark quoted from the following letter he received from his father:

“Mark,
Congratulations, always remember numero uno, you are a uniquely infinitely valuable person. Your mother and I love you, so do your brothers and sisters and friends, but all our love and interest put together cannot compare with the passionate interest and love that God himself showers upon you. You are his, he wants you and he will make you the perfect man you want to be. Love, Daddy”

That is a real man, who knows the love of His Father above, and is able to transmit that love in a way that blesses his children with the Father’s love. How many young men would feel the need to join a gang if they knew that kind of love from a father?

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