Part III:
For several moments, Caleb stood there staring at his reflection in the mirror. The water continued to drip off his unshaven beard as he examined the lines in his brow. Leaving the water running, he grabbed his toothbrush from the holder and smeared a strip of toothpaste on the end of the bristles. While he was methodically brushing back and forth, he caught sight of his daughter, standing behind him with sleep still in her eyes.
“Good morning Daddy,” the girl said, in a voice that always found a way to tug gently at his heart strings.
Cutting short his brushing for the moment, Caleb spit out the mouth full of toothpaste that had been collecting beneath his tongue and turned around to greet his daughter. “Why are you up so early?” he said to her, while picking her up and clutching her tight. “I was trying to be quiet so I did not wake you.”
“But I was already awake. I want to rise with the sun just like you and tend to the bees each morning. You always tell me I am not old enough yet. But, I wonder, how can I prove to you that I am ready?”
The intensity of the conversation caught Caleb off guard. “How about we go downstairs and discuss this over some breakfast?”
To be continued…
