When you're in the thick of parenting, when you're knee-deep in diapers and tantrums and teenage drama, it's easy to lose sight of the big picture. You're just trying to survive, just hoping and praying that you're not totally screwing up your kids, that somehow, despite all your missteps and shortcomings, they'll turn out to be decent human beings.
But then, something kind of magical happens. Those little rugrats, those moody adolescents, they grow up. They become adults. And if you're really, really lucky, you get to witness something that takes your breath away: you get to see them become loving, compassionate people in their own right.
That's what's happened with our daughters, and trust me, it's the most incredible gift. It's like all those years of worrying and wondering and trying our best, even when our best felt totally inadequate - it's like it was all leading up to this moment, this revelation.
Because here's the thing: our daughters, they're not just loving people. They're the kind of people who radiate warmth and kindness, who make everyone around them feel seen and valued. They're the kind of people who go out of their way to help a friend in need, who volunteer their time and energy to make the world a little bit brighter.
And the craziest part? They've become these amazing, loving adults not because of us, but in spite of us. I mean, don't get me wrong, Lisa and I - we tried our best. We showed up, we loved them fiercely, we did the whole unconditional love thing. But we also made a ton of mistakes. We lost our tempers, we said the wrong things, we got caught up in our own stuff and forgot to really listen.
But somehow, miraculously, our daughters took all of that - the good, the bad, and the ugly - and they alchemized it into something beautiful. They took the love we gave them, even when it was imperfect, and they multiplied it, expanded it, set it free in the world.
Watching them now, as adults, it's like seeing the very best parts of ourselves reflected back at us, but magnified, amplified. It's like catching a glimpse of the people we always hoped we could be, the kind of love we always wanted to put out into the world.
And you know what? It gives me so much hope. Because if our daughters can become these incredible, loving people, not because of us, but in spite of us - then maybe there's hope for the rest of us, too. Maybe we're all capable of so much more love and compassion than we ever dreamed possible.
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