Special Interview: What Two Little Girls Think About Their Daddy!

Sabey & Camille

Recently I had an unplanned opportunity to converse with two young girls about their dads. One of them was Camille (7 at the time and almost 8) my only girl. The other little girl was her cousin Sabey (who had turned 8 recently).

While the same questions will no doubt elicit different answers from different young children, I think it is interesting to know how children perceive things. Here is my conversation, followed by a special treat they agreed to sing for me.

MF: Why do you love your daddy?
S: Because he is nice to me.
C: Because he has money to buy us food.
S: I also like my daddy because he helps us make dinner.
C: I like my daddy because he cares for me.

MF: What is something funny about your dad?
S: My daddy is funny because he says that all of us (his children) have to have 100 spankings a day, and when we do something fun, he says "remember the rules, no fun allowed!"
C: My dad is funny because whenever he sneezes, he sneezes a lot of times, like maybe 5 or 6 times!
S: What else is funny about my dad is that he sneezes really loud and when my little brother was a little baby, he cried when my dad sneezed.
C: My dad is also funny because he chases us around the house.

MF: So, when your dad makes something to eat, what is your favorite thing he makes?
C: My favorite thing that he makes is quesadillas.
S: My favorite thing that my dad makes is puffy pancakes (German pancakes), even though it takes about an hour to make, I think it's really good.

MF: What is one of your favorite memories with your dad?
C: One of my favorite memories is when my dad and I went on a daddy/daughter date to a restaurant in Mexico.
S: My favorite memory of my dad is when he baptized me. Also, on our first daddy/daughter date, we went to my girl dance.

MF: If your dad were a super hero, what would he be?
Neither could answer the question. So I guess you know what that means!

MF: What is your dad really good at?
C: At making me laugh by tickling me and saying funny things and hmm, by...
S: My dad is really good at making laugh because he chases me around the house and tickling me.

MF: What is your dad really bad at?
S: My dad is REALLY bad at doing my hair (fast answer!). My dad is also really bad at doing ballet (laughter from both girls!)
C: My dad is really bad at remembering things...yes.

MF: If your dad were an animal what animal would he be?
C: My dad would be a horse because I love horses and I love to ride a horse.
S: If my dad were an animal he would be a fish because he likes to go fishing and loves to fish!

MF: Why is your dad awesome?
S: My dad is awesome because he is very funny and I he makes me laugh a lot and I like to laugh.
C: My dad is the awesomest dad because he likes to do interviews with me and I love it! It's so fun!

Needless to say...this was a choice experience! To end this post, here they sing one of my favorite primary songs: "Daddy's Homecoming"

Fathers in the Scriptures: King Benjamin

King Benjamin was probably the best or one of the best kings in recorded scripture. It is interesting that the first thing that Mormon highlights about this King was his teachings as a father to his sons (Mosiah, Helorum, and Helaman). What did he teach them (see Mosiah chapters 1 and 2)?

• His language (1:2)
• About prophecies of their fathers (1:2)
• Concerning the records or scriptures in the plates of brass (1:3)
• About the commandments they were supposed to keep and the promised blessings (1:3, 7)
• The mysteries of God (1:3, 5)
• His testimony of these things (1:6)

Given other contextual information in this chapter, it is safe to assume he also taught his sons about covenants (1:11-13), the importance of temples (1:18, 2:1), sacrifice (2:3), family values (2:5-6), and service to others (2:17) among other principles.

So, what is the lesson? Whether we are kings or paupers, above our profession or vocation, our most important role next to being righteous husbands, is that of a father. Ours is the responsibility to teach our children just as this good king and excellent father did.