This Father’s Day, Cealle Creative honors fatherhood, the paternal bond, and the influence of fathers' presence in the lives of their daughters.

This month I had the pleasure of having an intimate conversation with Cynthia Gladman. Cynthia is her father’s only daughter, a true “Daddy’s Girl” who cherishes the time she shared with her father growing up and the special place that she continues to hold in his heart. I was eager to talk to Cynthia about her relationship with her dad, because having had the honor of witnessing it firsthand I’ve always admired it. I met Cynthia more than a decade ago, when she visited my boutique shop The Powderoom. Cynthia was a regular client who oftentimes shopped alone or with friends. Although I appreciated her patronage and enjoyed seeing Cynthia whenever she visited my shop, either alone or with a friend or two, the visits that had the most impact on me were the ones when she’d come in with her father, Mr. Bennie Gladman. My heart would secretly swell whenever they’d walk in together, because I could feel and would witness that the bond was undeniable. This grown woman would morph right in front of my eyes, in real time, into a girl cherishing her time with her father. I was not raised with the influence of a father, but I do recognize the importance of a father’s presence. For a daughter, a father holds a powerful promise, a promise of forever love.

Some people ask how a person can miss what they've never had. I’m not certain exactly where my feelings lay with regard to my own father in relation to this sentiment, but what I do know is whenever I see a young girl with their dad, I smile quietly to myself and seize the moment to reflect on my life without my dad’s presence. I ask myself,what if my dad had not passed away when I was a little girl?

Cynthia’s father, Mr. Gladman, will be 97 years young this year! And I can assure you she is still and will forever be Daddy’s Girl…

To view my chat with Cynthia visit me on Youtube and to all the dads out there, Happy Father’s Day!

Editor Samantha Hunter