Somewhere between the overly intrusive parent and the parent who forgets about us after we're out of the house is the ideally empa...thetic parent who recognizes the relativity of choice, the errors of his or her own way, and our need to find our own way and who can stay with us at a respectful distance while we do it.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The process of becoming an empathetic, autonomous adult--through all the wondrous and exhilarating and challenging, even painful, ...transitions of emotional growth in childhood--is not unlike learning to walk; each step makes you stronger for the next one. But if your parent is doing the walking for you, you do not have the muscles even to support your own emotional weight. You cannot stand alone.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »