Losing a parent is never an easy thing. A parent is, after all, someone you’ve known all your life and had a very special bond with. It’s elemental and goes beyond anything that can easily be explained. Andrea lost her father to pancreatic cancer. Later that year, she got married. Knowing that there would be a major absence at the ceremony, her brother recorded his own version of “Butterfly Kisses,” a song about a father’s love for his daughter.
“Butterfly Kisses” was written by Bob Carlisle and Randy Thomas and released in 1997. It was actually a present for Carlisle’s daughter, a special way to mark her 16th birthday. “Butterfly Kisses” topped the Adult Contemporary Chart and also won a Grammy Award for best country song. It’s been covered by the Raybon Brothers, Jeff Carson, Cliff Richard, and Jermaine Paul. The song is a beautiful description of the father-daughter bond across the years, from childhood memories all the way to the daughter’s wedding day.
At first Andrea’s jaw literally dropped, but she was was quickly overcome with emotion when her brother announced that he had made a recording of “Butterfly Kisses” and that it would be played during what would have been the wedding’s traditional father-daughter dance. In her dad’s absence, several close family members danced with Andrea, first her grandfather (her dad’s dad), then her two brothers in turn, and finally her new father-in-law. There can’t possibly have been a dry eye in the room! Tragic though her father’s passing was, it’s great to see that Andrea has such a wonderfully loving and supportive family.
We’ve posted this incredibly emotional video below. It’s obviously struck a chord: the video has more than 26 million views.
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