Bride wrote letters to her dad at 8. She gasped when he pulled out the last one at her wedding 14 years later

An Instagram video posted by @wakefield_films is bringing people to tears after capturing one of the most emotional moments of a wedding weekend — a father reading a letter his daughter wrote to him when she was 8 years old. He had saved it for 14 years before opening it at her wedding. "Katelyn, at the age of 8, took time to write her dad letters for each major stage of life. The last unopened one happened to be for when she got married. At their rehearsal dinner, he opened and read it for the first time 14 years later," the filmmaker wrote in the caption. The video, posted on July 26, gained 1.7 million views and almost 140,000 likes. 

The clip opens with the father standing with a microphone during the rehearsal dinner, saying, "I've brought something." He then holds up a sealed envelope from his "Dad's letters box" — the one marked for Katelyn's wedding day. It was the last in a series of letters she had written for moments like prom, her first date, and going off to college. This one had been waiting for over a decade.

"I don't really know," he says before opening it. "I have no idea what is in this. This could be great. I'm making Rachel nervous." The letter reads: "I can't thank you enough for the lessons and the morals you have given me. There is no better person in the world to raise me. You set an example for me of how I should live, and also what my husband should be like. I hope he is at least half as awesome as you are."

The father lets out a laugh and says, "I didn't set this up. What a heist." He then keeps reading, "Words cannot explain how much I love you. And I'm still your little girl." The moment cuts to footage of him seeing Katelyn in her wedding dress, hugging her tightly as they both get emotional. It’s the kind of affectionate bond that doesn’t need ceremony to feel profound.

A 2018 study on long-term parent–child bonds found that fathers who offer emotional warmth, guidance, and affirmation often leave their daughters with stronger long-term psychological satisfaction and emotional well-being. The post struck a chord with many, and people flooded the comment section with nothing but love and admiration for the beautiful father-daughter relationship.

@amarantinephotography wrote, "Oh my word!! Their relationship is so sweet! He definitely has set a good example for his daughter, and it seems as though he and his wife raised her well." @raammm added, "It twirls! And with that comment, Dad was transported back to when she was a little girl. That reaction was perfect!" @insiakhaled shared, "I wrote my dad a letter over 10 years ago and told him to open it when he felt down and needed to hear how much I loved him. 10 years later, as I went through a divorce and perhaps the most difficult year of my life, he opened it. Not for him, but for me. He had kept it all these years." @joewith_the_flow added, "My daughter's almost two. So I hopefully have at least 20 years to practice my father's speech without bursting into tears. Pray for me."

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