My Daughter's First Date · Feb 14, 11:45 AM
Ashlyn went on her first date last Wednesday and I’m proud and happy to say it was with me.
Today is Valentines Day and one of my “valentines” is my daughter, Ashlyn. She is a rose amidst a patch of bramble with 5 brothers and no sisters. A week ago, she called me as I was on my way home from work and asked me out on a date. The local High School was sponsoring a “Daddy-Daughter Dance” and Ashlyn wanted to go with me. It was that night. I lunged at the opportunity.
As I pulled into the driveway, she was already waiting at the door, dressed and anticipating my arrival. I quickly changed into my nicest suit (this was to be a formal affair) and we were off.
At the dance we checked her coat (yes, they had an attended coat check—nice touch) and bought our tickets. The first thing we did was go upstairs and get our picture taken. I would have posted the picture, but it was a polaroid shot and I’ve got to scan it in and touch it up to make it close to viewable, but it does help us remember the evening.
After getting our picture taken we went back down to the dance floor to do what we came there for: to dance. They played a lot of fun music from all generations and genres—Nat King Cole, Smash Mouth, Chubby Checker, The Chicken Dance, and on and on. Dads and Daughters in all shapes, sizes, and ages were out there. We had a blast. At one point during the dance, Ashlyn just stopped, looked up at me and gave me a big hug. She didn’t say anything, and she didn’t need to. It was as if time stood still and we were enjoying one of those moments in life when you are truly and completely happy. I will always remember that moment and I hope that Ashlyn will always be that happy to dance with her father.
Well, I’m not as young as I used to be and I can’t dance1 all evening like I could when Kristi and I were dating. So after an hour or so, I suggested that we go to dinner. Lucky for me she loved the idea and we went to a nice restaurant and had a wonderful meal together. We talked and ate and didn’t want the evening to end. Eventually it had to as the activities of the evening caught up with both of us and I took her home. It was a beautiful night and one that I’ll always look back on fondly—Ashlyn’s first date.
1 That’s not to imply that I can actually dance. More like moving with the music. And that’s not to imply that I have rhythm either. Let’s just say that I remain in motion while the music is playing.
— Steve Harward
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