On Why My Kids are Lucky to Know Me

Parents are people.  That might seem like a rather stupid thing to say.  But I think it’s easy to forget when you play such a huge role in the life of a dependent person with extensive, pressing and often loudly expressed needs, that you too are a human with needs.  Those oft-cited advisements to put on your own oxygen mask first, or fill your own cup, are typically followed by the rationale that doing so makes you better able to serve others.  But many have pushed back against this reading, saying it skips over the notion that it was also always a good idea to attend to yourself, simply because you’re a human worth tending to.