Final Thoughts on Estrangement

Today, it is so easy to mock parents for how they raise their little snowflakes.  Self-esteem above all else.  Above right and wrong, above winning and losing, above proper and appropriate discipline.  These parents are misguided and do not prepare their kids for the real world.  That's bad.

But on the opposite end of the spectrum, what happens when parents do not care about self-esteem at all?  Surely this is infinitely worse.  It's unconscionable. These people do not attend to the most basic responsibilities of parenting:  Raising strong, productive, and mentally and emotionally healthy adults-in-the-making.  They have no business raising children at all.

I do realize that this series of posts will come across as self-indulgent.  It is too easy and convenient and cliché to blame our parents for our shortcomings.  Right?  Nevertheless, I need to crystalize my thoughts, and short of writing a book, this blog offers a convenient outlet.

There's an idea:  Maybe I'll do just that and turn this series of posts into a book.  Might be cathartic.

Update, 1 January 2021:  Contrary to the title of this post, turns out these were not my final thoughts on estrangement.  Since originally posting this about a year ago, I have added quite a few more posts on the topic.  But at this point, I think I need to be done.  As for a book, I have put a draft together.  The problem is that in book form, these writings appear even more self-indulgent.  That might be okay if I felt like this work could help others.  But I don't see that.  Rather this exploration has been a sort of cheap therapy for myself.  Time to move on.
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