In a heartwarming story about the bond between a father and daughter, a Reddit user (u/curly_snack) shared her dad’s touching gesture of dedicating his thesis to her when she was just a toddler. With over 15k upvotes, the post has been widely applauded on the platform.
The post included a picture captioned, “I found out my dad dedicated his thesis to me.” The daughter shared more about her father, saying, “My dad is a pretty private man. He doesn’t really know how to express his feelings, and I got that from him. We were close when I was a kid, but then I became a teenage girl and I think he didn’t know how to deal with that.” She added that things have improved now, but they still don’t talk like they used to.
The woman further revealed that she was on a break and was looking through the family bookshelf “that no one ever looks at.” Just then, she stumbled upon the thesis that her father wrote a year after her birth. The daughter barely knew this document existed as her father did not reveal much about it in the past.
In the post is a photo of the thesis’ acknowledgment page. Her father dedicated this page to those who helped him complete his thesis. He started by thanking his mentor and moved on to appreciate the help he got from his wife. He thanked her for supporting him throughout the year and ensuring he was never short of “encouragement and desserts” for conducting his studies. He was also grateful that she read and commented on his work.
At the end of the acknowledgment column was a single sentence that brought smiles to people’s faces. The dad singled out a note for his one-year-old daughter. He thanked her for encouraging him with her smile. It read, “To my daughter Lea for her encouraging gurgles and smiles.”
Describing her father’s actions, the daughter called the acknowledgment “a punch in the gut.” She stated how she always thought her father was “the type of person who would show affection through actions rather than words, e.g. teaching me how to ride a bike or going with me to the cinema.”
The post did not take long to go viral, leaving many awe-struck over the father’s sweet take on her daughter in the thesis. One user, u/CPNZ, commented, “Just gurgle and smile next time you see him – but seriously, parents often are uncertain how much you want them around or to be left alone…have the conversation!” In a reply to this, another user, u/ebb_, commented, “Yea! I’m a dad and can’t wait for moments like this. My daughter is a new tween and I’m already in the feels. I pack her lunch almost every day, including a custom, hand-drawn sticky note. She has baggies of them in her little secret drawer. I can never stay upset with her.”
