A father sets the bar high for his daughter in everything.

Happy Father's Day to my Father!

Thank you for being my advisor and never allowing me to settle in a marriage for less than the man you know is for me. Thank you for raising me to be choosy in a man. You and my mother always taught me to be a strong independent woman.

You've raised the bar so high for me. You've taught me to be a woman of morals and virtue. You've taught me that character comes above reputation, and nobody has the right to put you down with your past mistakes if that's not the person you're today.

You've taught me whether it's right or wrong. People will do it anyway, and you have to listen and take away their reasons. People always want you to prove them right. Please do your best to prove them wrong. You've taught me that the world will try to break you down with the obvious, but persistence towards goals will always build you up with the intent of your inner character.

You've taught me to center my life around what's essential and look to the fact that I'm becoming a role model for the next generation.

I hope I never let you down as your daughter. I hope I don't run back to my past mistakes. Mistakes are there to grow US, not there for us to repeat them.

You've taught me that failure isn't a failure. It's only failure if you don't humble yourself and start over with a new approach.

You've taught me to be a woman of substance and value. I am who I am because when I failed, you were there to provide me with knowledge and show me how to grow from each failure.

You were the father who gave guidance when I needed it the most. You taught me to see the road ahead and not the road behind me. You taught me to be humble and look at myself before looking at others. You taught me that I should be so busy looking at myself that I become an example to those that are now growing up to have the same characteristics as me.

Daddy, the older I get, the more I realize it's not about winning or being number one. It's about taking the more challenging road and winning with my inner peace. It's about valuing my core values and associating with the right group of friends.

I believe that we all need a tribe or a community to support us. You and mom have always humbled yourselves from your failures and tried to role-model better for my siblings and me.

Life is not easy, but when you surround yourself with people who have your best interest at heart. It becomes easy. You've taught me to surround myself with people who aren't afraid to tell me when I screw up. You've taught me to surround myself with people who force me to mature every day of my life. You've taught me that sometimes I'm wrong, and when I'm wrong, I need to listen and be better and do better.

You've taught me to value the perspectives of others because sometimes I, too, make poor choices. You've taught me to see criticism as a reason to change for the better.

Every day I wake up, I realize that those are the very people who have had my back when most people haven't. Nobody criticizes out of hate. They always do it out of love.

You've taught me to be somebody who inspires those around me, even though some are intimidated by it, but it is because you've taught me to live a life where I care more about keeping my heart so that I can treat others right.

I've been reckless with my heart at times. I've picked toxic men at times. You've taught me to see the inside of people before I ever see the outside of them. I will still always be a daddy's girl at heart.

I love you, daddy.

I am gratefully filled with gratitude, beyond measure, to have such a loving father because I know so many people in the world who would give anything to have a daddy.