In his book The Masculine Mandate, pastor and author Richard D. Phillips writes of his meaningful relationship with his father. In 1972, Phillips was just 12-years-old when his father was sent to Vietnam. The only way he and his father could communicate was through letters. He writes:
One of the most powerful memories is the thrill of the letter I would
receive from my father almost every week …. Recalling my personal letters from
Dad practically brings me to tears even now. He would simply begin by telling
me about his life. Not big military issues, but "neat stuff" that
happened or that he saw. Then he would talk to me about my life, writing things
like this: "Dear Ricky, I heard you had a great baseball game and made a
great catch. Your mother told me how exciting it was when you won. How I wish I
could have been there, but I can see you making that catch in my mind." …
Do you see what [my dad] was doing? My dad was telling me that I was
his boy and that his heart was fully engaged with me, even from halfway around
the world …. In the midst of a life-and-death war zone, with all the weighty
responsibilities of a senior Army officer, my father was truly absorbed in my
life. And I knew it. So when he said to me, in effect, "My son, give me
your heart," he had already given every bit of his heart to me, his boy. I
couldn't possibly help giving my heart back to him.
Richard D. Phillips, The Masculine Mandate (Reformation Trust, 2010), pp. 97-98
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