This past Sunday was Father’s Day. First of all, let the record show—I only cried once. Yay me.

Listen, I will miss my Daddy until I see him again. The interesting thing is that now I know I am closer to seeing him because I am in the fall season of my own life. Strangely enough, I have fewer reasons to cry. I have experienced the process of turning mourning into sunshine and laughter. I have learned to embrace our memories and thank God for each one—the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Over the years, I have learned lessons about father-daughter relationships that I could not have understood when I was younger. I find myself paying closer attention to the way fathers function. I am exploring the hows and whys of what it means to be an excellent, present, and transformative father.

There is one thing I need men to understand:

You do not have to earn the love of your children.

I can speak from my own personal experience as a daughter and from what I have observed in the relationships between fathers and sons. Children love their fathers. They crave the unique connection that only a daddy can offer. A simple smile from a father can ignite a lasting light in the eyes of a child. And as much as we love and adore our mothers, they cannot replicate that particular spark.

Now, I know life has not been perfect for most of us. Some people have no relationship with their fathers and have no desire to pursue one. Some men did not have healthy relationships with their own fathers, so they do not feel the urge to become for someone else what they themselves never had.

But then there are those who do.

And oh, how rich their lives are as a result.

Men, I dare you to try it.

Mend the fences between you and your children that have been broken, neglected, or disregarded. Chase your children with the same determination that you pursue money, success, status, or anything else you deeply desire. By doing so, you will change generations to come.

And hear me when I say this:

It is never too late to start.

Let me share something about me and my Daddy.

I only lived with him in the same house for the first ten years of my life. He and my mother separated twenty days after my eleventh birthday. That was forty-nine years ago, and I still remember the day and even the time.

I also remember him taking me fishing in Anacostia Park when I was a little girl. Being with him felt like nothing else I had ever experienced. Those sweet memories remain tucked safely in my heart.

I have not been fishing in years, but I plan to make it part of my life again—not because I expect to catch anything, but because it connects me to the love of my Daddy.

That love is only a faint reflection of the love our Heavenly Father has for us.

And that is what keeps me hopeful.

So, I always smile when I see a daddy loving on his daughters or sons. I know the impact that kind of love will have on that child’s life.

And even if you are a man without children of your own, trust me when I tell you that there are little girls and little boys who need the love, guidance, and presence of a father figure. God has a way of equipping willing hearts with exactly what they need.

Your influence may be the very thing that helps shape a child into someone wonderful.

And what a legacy that would be.