4 of 21

Write now Article Tools

My husband is a father now, but what was he before? And why did it make being a father so special. When my husband and I met, he was/is an Airborne Soldier in the U.S. Army. He was 23 and getting ready to transfer to Germany for 4 years when we decided to get married and threw a wedding together in 2 weeks so I would be able to go with him. Four days before our wedding I took an at home pregnancy test. It read "PREGNANT". My immediate reaction was "he isn't going to marry me now because this wasn't planned" (I was on birth control). So I called him on the phone and told him he was going to be a father.

I don't think it ever really clicked with him that we were going to be parents until the day we heard the baby's heartbeat. Then the excitement faded for a bit and one night I was curled up to him in bed and the baby had the hiccups. He thought it was the most AMAZING thing ever to be able to feel it. From that day forward I only saw his eyes light up more and more each day. His smile could've light a dark room the day she was born.

He was able to spend 10 wonderful months with her. He changed diapers and for the first 6 weeks every time I got up to nurse or change a diaper, he was right there by my side. If she slept for more than an hour without fussing he had to poke her tummy to make sure she was still breathing. She would fall asleep on her blanket in the floor at nap time and he would lay there next to her just staring at her the entire time she slept. I started realizing, that he was no longer my husband but he was this little girl's daddy, her father.

That fact became very apparent when at 10 months old, he deployed to Afghanistan. The day he deployed was one of the most difficult days of his life, probably the most difficult up until that point. He had begged me not to cry, that it would be a better moral booster if I didn't. So I didn't, I didn't shed one tear while we were saying goodbye (they came later). However, the moment his commander called his name for him to take his seat on the bus to go get on the plane was the moment I realized this man is truly a father. He took his little girl in his arms and told her how much he loved her and that he would be home before she knew it and as the tears rolled down his cheek he handed her back to me, gave me a hug and kiss and told me he loved me, and turned and walked away.

Everyone thinks that soldier are strong and don't show emotion, but take a father away from his child and it's nearly impossible to hide the emotions that they feel. My husband, now a father of two beautiful little girls, is truly a hero in their eyes.

Learn more about this author, Francesca Pawlak.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Reflections: My husband is a father?
We want to hear your view. Write now!