Back when I was a stay-at-home Mama with two napping girls, the stars would sometimes align and allow me to watch Oprah. I am a shameless fan of Oprah (I think it's the whole Horatio Alger thing but that analysis will have to wait for now). That particular show aired shortly after Arnold Schwartzenegger was elected Governor of California and both he and Maria Shriver were Oprah's guests. The Kennedy mystique pretty much fascinates me in much the same way Britain's Royal Family does so I was especially interested in hearing how such a nice girl with such impeccable democratic breeding wound up with such a strange republican (no offense to my lovely republican friends!).
Politics aside, I heard something on that show that still resonates with me today. Maria was talking about her upbringing and was sharing some details about her remarkable parents. She credited her father, in particular, with giving her a strong sense of confidence and belief in her self. Apparently, one time he told her something like, "Maria, whenever you walk into a room, everyone in it is lucky." The beauty of a father thinking that about his daughter is touching and powerful beyond belief. You'd think a comment like that could make a girl's head swell but really, I have no doubt he was just speaking his own truth. I know this because Mark feels just the same way about our girls. They are his precious daughters and this world (not just our world) is a better place because they are in it. I also know this because it is exactly how my own father made me feel. I can't recall many specifics, I can just say that I know, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that I am SPECIAL because I am special to him.
People say girls grow up to marry a man like their father. I am grateful I am lucky that way.
And I wish this legacy for my daughters as well.
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