The Sun Will Rise
In Castaway Tom Hanks stars as a FedEx manager who spends four years on a deserted island when his plane crashes. After he is rescued, he confides in his best friend how the picture 
and thoughts of his girlfriend [who he intends to marry] sustained him and helped him to survive. With her love in mind, he determined to live each day on the island one at a time. He adopted the positive outlook that, “tomorrow the sun will rise;” which required him to learn to fish with a spear, start a fire with two sticks and face challenges he had never faced before. Then, after the surf brought in material he could use to built a raft, he added an element of patience, “who knows what the tide will bring.” Believing that the love of his life would always be there, he had the strength to survive.
We have people in our lives who encourage and support us day after day. They help us to be positive, patient, confident and to learn new things. For many of us dads, that person is the mother of our children. So as Mother’s Day approaches, I want to celebrate them again.
A few years ago, I wrote about how my wife supported me through a surgery:
I’ll Be There
On the day of the surgery she sat next to me while we waited for “my number to be called”…. When the time came for me to go, she gave me a kiss, squeezed my hand and told me “I will be here when you come out”.
The surgery was quick, successful and without complication … The next thing I knew, I was sitting in the recovery area, fully dressed and ready to go home. I looked up and saw her face. Just as she had promised, at the end of my journey, she was there when I came out.
… That day was a reflection of my life. As I face the events of each day, sometimes familiar and sometimes entirely new and unexpected, I can never be absolutely sure how the time will end. Sometimes the day passes without complication or calamity. Sometimes there are bumps and at other times I run into brick walls. But on each of those days, there is one thing that I can always count on. My bride will always be there. Together for a lifetime, my surgery was a reminder of the love and support that I receive every day. No matter what happens, my wife is always there. Long ago she committed to love me unconditionally… and despite the challenges of living with someone who has “pitched his tent in the field of hope”, she has been a willing roommate… She is my guardian angel who seeks to protect me. She holds the compass that points to my true north.
We Are Not Alone
As Be There Dads, one of the struggles we share is our desire to “do it by ourselves”… through every challenge and situation. Like intentional castaways, we isolate ourselves on our own islands. Yet, for most of us, we are not alone. We have a partner who supports us, believes in us, encourages us and loves us no matter what. She will prod us when we are unsure, pick us up when we stumble, and forgive us when we leap before we look. Even when we are apart, we feel her presence. Too often we take for granted the power in the presence of the one with whom we have chosen to share our lives. Before we have children, while we raise them, and after they leave our nest, that presence helps sustain us.
Celebrate Her
For over forty years I have awakened knowing that no matter what the day may bring, certainty or ambiguity, success or failure, heartache or celebration… or whatever the tide might bring, the sun will rise because there is one person who will always “be there when I come out”.
Be There Dads everywhere, I ask you to take a moment to think about that presence in your life. Remember the feelings of comfort, confidence and caring that come from her and be thankful. Perhaps on this Mother’s Day, you can find a way to show her one more time how much that all means to you.
Happy Mother’s Day to all those who make the sun rise.
