Fatherhood boils down to watching my own childhood

I watch [my daughter’s actions] from above, and this, I’m realizing, is what fatherhood seems to boil down to: watching my own childhood a second time, from a different vantage point. It’s a chance to remember and a chance, perhaps, to see that my mistakes and fears were not so unique. This other person is having them right now, all over again. In that sense, it’s also a chance to forgive myself.

You can’t have a child, I’ve discovered, without realizing the depth of your connection to your ancestors and your collective past. You are no longer a leaf on the great tree; you are a branch, part of the wood that goes all the way down to the deepest, strongest roots. A tree as old as memory itself, but always growing.

Discovered at Patapsco: The names of things