Forever Daddy's Girl

By Erik:

Tonight was Daisy's last night here in Hawaii. We decided to spend it with her Uncle and her dad Darrell Bajo. Darell is a simple man that says what he means and who has an extremely tough exterior. This is a dad that was a bare knuckle fighter, Harley riding, work-aholic. The man is darn near 50 and working 6 days a week about 16 hour days of hard labor. Tough a man as I have ever met. However on this night I saw his rhino skin peel away like a banana's skin.

You could always tell he cared for Daisy but this trip to Hawaii seemed different. I saw him right before I left on deployment and he was carrying a heavy heart. Then when Daisy and I saw him the various times this trip his eyes came alive. The years of hardship, age and worries lifted from the old mans face. His eyes lit up and I swear he automatically lost about 15 years. As for Daisy she ran up to him like a little girl and threw her arms around her Daddy. Their hug was tight and filled with love. You could see his pride, excitement and regret all in just a few moments. Pride that his daughter was now a mother with two extraordinary kids, excitement of seeing his baby girl back from Texas and regret that he wasted the few years prior to his daughter's leaving the island. A true hallmark moment.

So back to tonights dinner:

By Daisy Mae...

These past few weeks I have had so many memorable experiences!!! I got to spend unforgettable moments with extraordinary friends, whom are more than that, they will now and forever be my family. I had drinks with people I love and timeless memories with my soul's mate. But tonight as I sat at a table filled with my Daddy, my uncle (my mother's brother) and his family, and my Love I couldn't believe how much my heart swole with emotion. My uncle Phil and his family have always shown Erik and I what true family is. They have been married for nearly 25 years and together for longer than that. They have 3 great, albeit a little crazy at times, kids that I can only hope mine come close to being. When I think of a great marriage I always think of theirs, not that I don't have great family, but they've stood the test of time and hardship. I'm blessed to have them in my life and I'm blessed that they love me as much as they do. Life would be much harder without them.

But tonight my heart soared when my Dad surprised me by saying he would join us for dinner so that he could see me on my last night. Let me just be honest, there are times when I am a little dissapointed with my Dad's choices, however that was never enough for me to hate him in the least. Tonight our laughter and smiles brought me back to when I was a child and I didn't have a care in the world and when I was hurt these two men were the ones that came running!!! My Dad, Daddy, fit in so well that there didn't seem to be any awkwardness even though he was sitting with his ex-wife's family. As dinner wound down I tried more and more to stall the goodbyes that were inevitable. We took a few pictures for my weary heart and I hugged everyone. The one that tore me apart was when my Dad wrapped his arms so tightly around me and said 3 little words every little girl loves hearing from her Daddy: I love you. Nothing could stop my tears from flowing or my voice from quivering. I asked him to try hard to come and see me in the states, and with every ounce of conviction he could muster up without crying himself he said he would. I didn't want to let go, I didn't want to walk away from my Daddy...I know I'll see him again, I just don't know when and I don't like that feeling. As the tears stream down my face right now I have no other words that can express how much this hurts me tonight. I hope every little girl out there tells their Daddy just how much they mean to them, and I hope that my little girl one day writes something like this (without having to say goodbye) about Erik.