The Love of My Life: My Daughter Claire

As our kids get older we become invisible to them, their friends and activities are more important. Gone are the days when it was alright to hold hands or hug in public. We become cooks, taxi drivers, time keepers and on some days only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

There is a legendary story about man who came to visit a cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

As parents, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of an invisible parent.

I love Claire and would not have it any other way; she is my masterpiece.