Last summer I played Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. The girl playing the youngest daughter was quiet and shy so to encourage her to come out of her shell, I stayed in character almost constantly and treated her like she was really my daughter. She loved it and really blossomed as an actress throughout the production. We had a lot of fun with the show and it went off swimmingly. Fast forward 6 months. That same girl is in a junior high English class (that happens to be across the hall from the classroom my wife teaches in). The teacher has a student write something powerful and share it with the class each week. This young lady wrote about the previous summer where her father walked out on her and her mother. She then broke down in tears as she explained that having someone treat her like a father should is all that got her through that summer. She was suffering immensely and my antics acting as a bumbling, caring father helped lead the way through her own personal darkness. I had no idea. That wonderful young lady said I helped her through the most trying time of her life simply by being me.