the world’s daughter

If you ever want to understand the purity of love, there’s no better place to find it than in the proud gaze of a father looking upon his daughter. I’ve found in harsh moments, that we can be reminded of the preciousness of the cycle of life in this relationship- daughters and fathers. And that the true merit of a man, of a person, can be seen in how he treats his daughter.

Don’t get me wrong, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, brothers and sisters are all beautiful relationships. But if we really want to understand the state of the world, it can be seen through the microcosm of a father and his daughter. And if we scale this out, we might imagine the way that we treat the daughters of the world is an even greater reflection of who we are as a collective people.

I am the world’s daughter, just as the my sisters to my left and my right are. When I am shown respect, love, compassion and understanding we can imagine that the world is a safer, more loving and prosperous place. When all of the daughters of the world are shown dignity, honor, and care then we can imagine the world as a more loving place.

This week our nation celebrated together as the Obama Presidential Center opened in Chicago. We were reminded through song, speech, and collective joy of a time in our nation when we were led by Barack Obama. A time of unity, prosperity, and hopeful progress. Barack was surrounded not only by his dedicated wife, Michelle, who has so gracefully guided, loved and supported him all of these years, but also by his daughters Malia and Sasha.

The opening ceremony celebration was a glorious day. There was sunshine, music, dancing, and a renewed sense of unity as a nation. As I watched from afar, the message that resonated with me the most was not one of politics or presidency, but the love of a father for his family and especially for his daughters. Even through the turmoil and challenges of eight years in the Oval office.

And so we might use this as a barometer of sorts. As a way to understand the state of the world. For it is in how we treat each daughter, each and every woman, that signals where we are as a nation and as a collective people. Fathers who love with sincerity wish only the best for their daughters. They extend a hand when they fall down. They lift them higher so that they can see the sky. They protect them from the world’s cruelty. They provide every resource possible.

I am the world’s daughter. And the love, respect, compassion, and dignity that I am shown, not just by my father but by all men, is a barometer for where we are as a culture.

Let us protect our daughters. Let us show them love. Let us celebrate their intelligence, their creativity, and their personal freedoms. For when we set this example, our sons will thrive too. Our sons will understand what it means to be a man who operates with dignity, honor, and integrity. And the cycle of love and nurturing will continue.

I am so grateful to have a father who has shown me this kind of love. He has always extended a hand when I needed help. He has always given me the space to be my own person. He has always honored and celebrated my intelligence. He has always wished to protect me from the cruelty of the world, even when he didn’t know it was harming me. This is true power. This is real strength.

For any man who needs to prove who he is through the might of his ego, through the temptation of control, by way of force, well… he is just demonstrating his weakness of character. Let us hold these types of men accountable. For this is the lesson that we need to teach our sons and our daughters. This is how we break unhealthy cycles as we work together to build a better, more loving world of prosperity, peace and hope.

I invite you to watch the opening celebration of the Obama Presidential Center so that you might discover what stands out to you the most from this event. I hope you see what I saw- the true love of a father for his family. For his wife and his daughters. And for the daughters of the world. May we all know and experience this type of love.

Thank you, Barack. Thank you, Michelle. Thank you, Malia and Sasha. You give this world great hope and demonstrate for us what it means to be a family and what love looks like.