I want to start by wishing you a very, very happy birthday. It feels just like yesterday when the doctor placed you in my arms. Its been 6 amazing, breath-taking and spectacular years. Wow! Dave, you truly changed my life forever. I vividly remember the way you starred at me from you crib wondering to yourself, “Who is this big black man starring down at me?” and gave me the smile that melted my heart. You have given me moments that I will cherish for the rest of my life.
On this very special day, I pray that God’s favor, love, peace, mercy and grace will follow you every single day of your life. You were created to change the world for good and to put a smile on the faces of all mankind. I pray that you will be a solution provider, a source of joy for all and a chronic lover of God. You shall be the head and never the tail. Nations will come to you for solutions to their problems and you will be the pillar they will lean on. They will identify the grace of God on your life.
Dave, you know I love you with every molecule in my body and I will gladly lay down my life for you. I promise to be the best father any child can ever hope for. Why won’t I aim for that when I have the best son that any parent can ever dream or hope for? Yes, you are the best son on the planet. I promise to be a much better father to you than my father ever was to me. I promise to put you on the right path to greatness following only God’s plan for your life. Not my plan…God’s plan.
Thank you for being a source of strength to your daddy. You are like a 20 year old stuck in the body of a 6 year old kid. You are not just a son but a great friend. You always make sure there is a smile on my face and even when I scold you for running around inside the house (because you know its a law. No running in the house!) with tears in your eyes, you still do silly things that make me burst into uncontrollable laughter.
I am grateful to God for giving me a son like you. At just 6 years old, you have already made me a proud father. When you brought home your certificate of excellence from school as the top student in class, you were scared when you saw tears in my eyes. Dave, those were tears of joy because you are fulfilling all the promises God has made over your life.
David, seeing the smile on your face every morning is nothing but pure heaven. I love the way you dance to every beat. You even dance to the music of every commercial that comes on TV. The fact that you now dance like a white kid is more amusing and you know it but you still won’t stop when I tease you about it. We need to get your rhythm back dude. LOL. Maybe I threw out the Whiz Kid CD too soon. LOL.
I love the way you laugh when I do my very horrible british accent and you say, “Daddy, that doesn’t sound british at all”. It makes you crack up anyway. Then you do yours that sounds like you’re from another planet. In everything you do, always put God first, family next, then your career/work should follow. Don’t every change that order because you will regret it. Don’t let anything take God’s place in your life; not money, not family, not fame. Nothing. When you have God and you work according to his will and his way, everything in your life will fall in place.
Do not place your career or wealth above your family because when the chips are down, the family at home is where you run to. Love your family and always say it. Tell them everyday. Say it like you’ve never said it before. Don’t hesitate to make that phone call to your family or send a text only to say, “I am thinking of you and I want to say I love you” or “Thank you for being there for me.” BuBu, don’t be afraid to dream big and to chase those dreams.
The world will tell you that your dreams are unachievable and lofty. Don’t worry, they can’t achieve it because they are not you. You can do anything you set your heart to do. Think it. Believe it. Achieve it. I tell you that every single day and we both know that we have achieved some phenomenal things in this life, right? Don’t wait for other people’s validation before you do what you have to do. As long as it is right with God and right in your heart, and the Holy Spirit in you does not question it, do it.
You don’t have to go the way of the multitude. Don’t be afraid to do something great because only a few people have dared to. The greatest people that ever lived and and changed the world were mostly the minority. They stepped away from the norm and probably broke all protocol. (We have talked about that before haven’t we?)
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Never be afraid to fall. But always remember that in every mistake made, there is a lesson to be learnt. Whenever you fall, there must be something you need to pick up from the floor that will help you as you get up and continue your journey through life. In life, you will make mistakes but always make sure that there is a serious lesson learnt from that mistake so you don’t make the same one again.
It’s important that you not only learn from your mistakes, but also from the mistakes that others have made. Including your father. You and I have spent several nights talking, laughing, playing, building space ships and eating potato chips with soda till 3am. You have seen me cry at night all by myself and you have been a source of strength even to your daddy. Don’t be afraid to cry, even as a man. It helps to let it all out once in a while but as soon as the tears are gone, get back on your feet and face the world with your head held up high.
Value friendship. Good friendship.
Never be selfish in your relationship with people. What you cannot tolerate, don’t do to others. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Learn to say no when you have to say no so you don’t get entangled in commitments that will become a burden to you eventually. Don’t let anybody change the core of who you are. Don’t let circumstances or the world destroy the purity of your heart. The world is a complicated place to live in. Not because God made it so, but because the humans in it have made it complicated. In all you do, look for the beauty in the world, the honesty and the positive.
Living in a complicated and struggling world does not mean you have to struggle and be complicated. Don’t get caught up in their vices. Don’t get involved with the madness around you. Fix your eyes on the positive. Fix your eyes on God. Greatness awaits you David. I have seen it. I can feel it. I know it. I know you always joke about making all the money we will ever need when you’re 6 years old . Emm…dude, you’re 6 now. You wanna start paying part of the mortgage now? LOL. Remember that a portion of that money also goes to your mummy because she loves you very much. Remember, family is very important. But right now, focus on your school and keep your eyes on God. When you look back on these words in Twenty years, I need you to know that they are from the heart of a man who is so proud to be your father.
David, you have touched the lives of everyone around you with your honesty, your purity, your smile and your dance moves. May God never take his eyes off you and may His peace always be with you. Happy Birthday David and I love you more than words can ever express.
