Butterfly Kisses
by
Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: August 22, 2006
Summary: A father reflects on his daughter’s wedding day
Rating: K
Disclaimer: I don’t own Power Powers, if I did, things would be vastly
different. I also don’t own the song, Bob Carlisle and whoever else does.
AN: This song is very special to me; it’s one I’ll be playing before I
get married (if and when that ever happens). The idea of Carter and Dana as a
certain pink ranger’s parents comes from Etcetera Kit and Wes and Jen as a
certain blue/red ranger’s parents is from White Time Ranger. All credit goes to
them.
Dedication: To BloomingViolets, Etcetera Kit, Angela and Taz71 – thanks
for all the support! Hope you like this and it turns into an “Aww” worthy story
for you!
She’ll change her name today.
She’ll make a promise, and I’ll give her away.
Standing in the bride room just staring at her.
She asked me what I’m thinking, and I said, "I’m not sure,
I just feel like I’m losing my baby girl."
Then she leaned over... and gave me...
Butterfly kisses, with her mama there.
Stickin’ little white flowers all up in her hair.
"Walk me down the aisle daddy, it’s just about time."
"Does my wedding gown look pretty daddy?" "Daddy don’t cry."
With all that I’ve done wrong, I must have done something right.
To deserve a hug every morning, and butterfly kisses.
I couldn’t ask God for more, man, this is what love is.
I know I’ve gotta let her go, but I’ll always remember.
Every hug in the morning, and butterfly kisses...
“Butterfly Kisses” by Bob Carlisle
--
She looks like a porcelain bride doll, sitting there on the foot rest in the
middle of the bridal room. Her eyes, which I know are a color somewhere between
mine and her mother’s, were closed. Her breathing is even, as is evident by the
steady rise and fall of her chest. Her hands calmly rest in her lap, her fingers
done in flawless French tips.
For a moment, I’m taken back twenty four years to when I first saw her mother
coming down the aisle toward me, wearing the same veil our daughter was now,
looking resplendent in yards and yards of soft, billowing silk and lace. And now
I’m watching twenty four years later, as my baby girl prepares to make the same
walk, to make the same promises to the man who holds her heart that her mother
made to me. I’m about to give her away to a young man I know loves and cherishes
and will protect my child at all costs, the same as my father-in-law did twenty
four years ago. I know this, because I've seen the way her face lights up when
he walks into a room, just like her mother's, and I've seen the way he holds her
close, even when they're just sitting in silence, just like I do with Dana.
“Daddy, what are you thinking?” she softly asks me, drawing my attention back to
the woman my daughter has become. She’s so much more than that now, more than my
daughter; she’s become a woman, yes, but she’s grown to be beautiful, with a
heart of gold, a mind as sharp as the proverbial whip, and she’s been a warrior,
a Power Ranger, who has seen the horrors this world has to offer. Even her title
as SPD Princess has faded, as she no longer acts like she has to keep the façade
of the fairy tale princess up for everyone she meets. She’s learned to spread
her wings like a butterfly, learned to love with every fiber of her being, and
now, she’s going to change her name today, no longer my baby, no longer just my
daughter, but now she’ll also be his wife, his partner, and his lover.
“I’m not sure. I just feel like I’m losing my baby girl,” I whisper to her as I
move to kneel before her. Tears pool in those eyes I know as well as my own,
which are also suspiciously watery. I’ve been preparing for this day since the
moment the doctor placed her in my arms, squirming and screaming, and she took
one look at me and smiled. Twenty-two years isn’t long enough to prepare to give
away your only baby girl.
She leaned over then, wiped the tears from my face, and gave me a butterfly kiss
on the cheek, just as she had every night when I tucked her into bed from the
moment she learned to kiss. I reach up and gently dab at the tears on the end of
her lashes, careful not to smear the makeup Dana and Z have meticulously
applied, before I lean forward and kiss her gently on the cheek. When we pull
back, I notice Dana’s still placing small white roses in her hair, which is a
mass of curls and being held out of her face by a tiara that has been passed
down in Day’s family for generations.
“Walk me down the aisle, Daddy? It’s just about time.” I nod and help her stand
up. Carefully, I lead her from her bridal room, her mother and Z right behind
us, and we head for the top of the terrace stairs we’ll walk down toward the
garden, where her beloved is waiting for her.
We stop at the top, and Dana kisses both her cheeks softly before hurrying down
the steps to get ready to be escorted in by the usher. Z squeezes her hand,
gives her the briefest of hugs, uttering something in her ear that makes her
giggle, and then gets ready to walk out the door and down the steps on cue.
“Does my wedding gown look pretty Daddy?” she asks softly, her free hand
smoothing out the invisible wrinkles. She looks every in the princess I’ve
always treated her as. I can only nod in agreement, more tears rebelliously
coming to my eyes and clogging my throat as I stare at her.
“Daddy don’t cry,” she whispers, reaching up to wipe the tears from my face just
as the wedding march starts. We smile at each other, and then step out onto the
stairs. I heard the door click shut behind us, the symbolism not lost on me. One
chapter of her life is now over, the door having closed on it, as this new
chapter begins, and a new door opens.
“Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today to witness the union of Sydney
Drusilla Grayson and Schuyler Tate Collins. Who gives this woman?”
As I give her hand to Sky, I stare at the pastor and smile sadly. “Her mother
and I do.”
The pastor nods, and after having given my baby girl a brief peck, I step back
and sit down beside Dana, who’s already crying softly. Our arms go around each
other, and I hear her whisper, “Its okay, Carter.”
I watch Sydney kiss Sky once the pastor tells them to do so, and smile. I
realize that in that moment, with all the mistakes and choices I’ve made, I must
have done something right to deserve a hug every morning and butterfly kisses at
night.