Hes already 35 and has neither children nor a wife
Just last week, I found myself at my mother-in-laws house, along with my son. While we were there, an old family friend of hers happened to be visiting. That lady spent the whole day doting on my boy.
Its such a pity I dont have any grandchildren, she said with a sigh.
This friend of my mother-in-law became a mother herself well after shed turned thirty. She absolutely adored her long-awaited son and never really denied him anything. Sadly, her husband passed away when their son was still very young, so she raised him on her own, juggling two jobs to keep things afloat.
When her boy turned 35, she finally plucked up the courage to ask when she might expect grandchildren of her own.
He simply replied, calmly, Never.
She was a bit taken aback, but he explained that it was her way of bringing him up that had made him, in his words, rather childlike.
Im too used to a simple life, he told her. No woman would ever want to take on the role of a second mum for me.
He went on to say that, in all honesty, he was perfectly content with how things were and felt no reason to change just to suit somebody else.
I dont need anyone but you, he added.
Later, she confessed, I never managed to teach him the most important thing: how to be a man.
Sometimes I wonder, can a mothers love, while it shields a child, also hold them back from growing into an independent person?
Id really like to hear your thoughts on this. As for me, it made me reflect on letting go and giving children room to become their own peoplea lesson that, perhaps, we all have to learn sooner or later.
