101209

Faith's tears poured forth in torrents from the breaking of her heart's dam.

Unbidden at first, memories from the past floated into her mind.

As she relived sweet moments with Daddy, she began to ache for more images of him.

Accumulating her recollections like fallen leaves on an autumn day, she gathered them around and wrapped herself in them, lost in her thoughts to the world.

-----

One of the most precious memories she had of him was seeing his gentle smile.

It was the first of millions he would come to give her, that first time she saw him at the Home.

"What's her name?" he asked the reedy woman who was in charge.

Faith'd never liked that woman.

Instead of letting her answer, Faith ran up to the smiling man - who had his hand around an equally pleasant-looking lady's waist - and said, "I'm Faith,".

He had given her - then six - a very serious look.
"Can we be your Daddy and Mummy, Faith?"

At ten, she'd broken her arm falling off the neighbour's roof.
"What were you doing up there?!" he demanded.
Sitting in the doctor's office at the hospital, watching as the nurse cast her arm in fibreglass, Faith kept quiet.
It was only on the way home that she had admitted to accidentally sending one of Daddy's tennis balls up onto the roof.
"I was trying to get it back. I'm sorry, Daddy,"
He stopped the car by the road and hugged her.
"Nothing's more important than you, Faith," he said, "Not even one of my prized tennis balls,"
And they laughed.

She also remembered the time when he'd encouraged her to join her school's track team.

"You run faster than the wind, Faith! You'll do fantastically," he grinned.

When she made it into the team, he'd been delighted.

And when she'd won the regional competition, he'd been ecstatic.

"See," he said, "it takes just a little faith to do wonders,".

-----

As she worked her way through all her remembered past with Daddy, the ache slowly dimmed.

As all the thoughts of her moments with him flowed by, her tears eventually dried.

When there was nothing left to remember, Faith sat up and watched as the burning sun descended its throne to make way for the moon to lord the night.