Divorce is a life disruptor that can create emotional wounds for adults and children. When a marriage ends, loving fathers often desire to remain routinely involved in the lives of their children, regardless of dissolving bonds shared with mates. Edmund H. Moore, Ph.D. —an engineer who works for the U.S. Air Force—knows the feeling of wanting to maintain a bond filled with unconditional love and communication for the sake of girls, despite divorce’s heavy strain on a family’s original structure.
During an interview with The Baltimore Times, Moore reflected on his path of penning “With A Father’s Love: 52 Weekly Letters To My Beloved Daughter.”
“Before I wrote the book, I was going through a divorce, and I was writing my daughter’s letters each week, and I did that for fifty weeks on a variety of topics, with the first letter being ‘I Will Always be There for You,” Moore said.
The creative Ohoian shaped a way to cement a forever bond with messages in mind. His caring, fatherly spirit led Moore to handwrite the letters and type them. Typically, he gave a copy each of his girls once every week.
“My daughters were 13 and nine years of age at the time of the divorce. I wanted them to know who I am as their father, and how much I love them,” Moore said in a press release.
Information provided on the author’s website also mentioned that Moore feared losing a custody battle. Moore told The Baltimore Times that sharing information about who he was, and providing helpful information for his girls, were among reasons that he chose to pen the letter. Moore added that he wanted both children to know that even if they endured a trying time in life, it would not affect unconditional love that would still be in place. It would remain coupled with protection and nurturing. Additionally, life lessons were included in Moore’s letters, too. Other topics ranged from confidence and finance to faith in God.
Moore’s feelings of wanting to ensure that his daughters knew how he felt about them were not far-fetched, considering today’s prevalence of relationship challenges. Parental conflicts may trickle down to children, even because of logistics.
In a study authored by Jane Anderson, findings revealed that despite changes in laws, the majority of children “spend more time with one custodial parent and obviously have less time with each parent overall.” And for most children, having to spend “less time spent with their fathers” is another aspect of a divorce’s impact.
Although Moore did not intend to share the letters with the general population, his status as an author took shape because friends and colleagues discovered the father’s heartwarming actions. They were the ones who suggested writing a book. “With A Father’s Love: 52 Weekly Letters To My Beloved Daughter” was the result of Moore taking their advice to publicly share fatherly contemplations. In 2019, Moore published his work through Lift Bridge Publishing.
Despite the period of Moore’s divorce, he was able to ascend to a better place. And now, the father, author, and community leader serves as an example to others who may also want to improve relationships with their girls.
“Edmund Moore’s down-to-earth nature and sense of humor shine through in these thoughtful notes from a father to his daughters. His labor of love allows parents who share his values to provide wise guidance to our children,” C. Kelly Robinson, author of “Between Brothers” said in a press release.
Photo by Barry Stiles Photography
Per information provided on Moore’s website, he does not claim to know it all or “be a perfect dad.” Moore admitted that he remains dedicated to striving to be the best father that he can be. His transparency is well stated, considering that men are often stereotyped as rarely expressing emotion or their feelings. In the process of redefining fatherly expression, Moore empowers other fathers and father figures, through advice and action.
“Well, the biggest thing I thought about was, ‘If I had a son, how would I treat my son,’ and I said, ‘I want to make sure that I treat them equitably. So, if you think about going to games where your son was playing, you would do the same thing for your daughters,” Moore said, mentioning that both genders should be treated the same.
Visit https://edmundmoore.com/ to learn more about Moore.