Lovely prose! The first paragraph is a beautiful visual, with "branches rattling together as they cast their leaves and petals into the air." You can almost smell it. :)
I understand that the moment in which the man was meditating is supposed to be the present, so the present tense is appropriate there. But you switch between present and past tenses in his memories, which was a bit confusing at times.
I really liked the glimpses of his feelings at being a father, and his pride in his daughter. Very lovely. Well done!