Title: “The Dash Was Worth Living (Daddy’s Song)”
By a daughter remembering the life her father gave them
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Verse 1
I came in small that April day,
Early little fighter, you lit the way.
Fourteen months and sis was here,
Then our baby brother in another short year.
You were just a kid with a wedding ring,
Tried to be brave, gave us everything.
You joined the service, packed us tight,
Started chasing duty through the morning light.
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Chorus
And we ran where you ran, through each distant shore,
From Pensacola sand to Italy’s doors.
Germany’s chill and Fort Meade’s calm air,
That’s the place that always stayed there.
Crete was a postcard, Japan felt like home,
You gave us a world, even while feeling alone.
The memories shine as your light starts dimming—
Dad, the dash was worth living.
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Verse 2
We had summers full of fishing lines,
Fireworks and cheeseburgers under pines.
The stereo loud—The Doors and G’n’R,
Doobies and Eddie Money in the family car.
You gave each of us our own kind of space,
But somehow, your love always held us in place.
We didn’t have riches, we didn’t need more,
We had you—and that opened every door.
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Bridge
And now I sit beside your chair,
A thousand thoughts running through my head.
I hold your hand, try to make time slow,
But there’s one last thing I need you to know…
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Chorus (repeat)
We ran where you ran, through each distant shore,
From Pensacola sand to Italy’s doors.
Germany’s chill and Fort Meade’s calm air,
That’s the place that always stayed there.
Crete was a postcard, Japan felt like home,
You gave us a world, even while feeling alone.
The memories shine as your light starts dimming—
Dad, the dash was worth living.
⸻
Outro
And we’re all here, your children grown,
Standing around you, but never alone.
We’ll carry your stories wherever we land,
You changed our whole lives with your steady hands.
So when you go, know you’re still giving—
Because, Dad… the dash was worth living.
PandaBaker
