Unread postby Corribus » 09 Jun 2008, 16:10
Interesting question.
I think getting to know your own child is very similar to getting to know anyone else, especially for a father. It takes time to form bonds of love. If, a week after she was born, she was in danger of getting run over by a speeding bus, would I have jumped in front of it to save her? Well, it's tough to answer a question like that. But one thing that I can answer is that I'd be more more likely to do it today than yesterday, and I'd be much more likely to do it tomorrow than today. Maybe it's not the same with women, who I imagine have more of a biological instinct to put their child's welfare at first place right from day 1. But one thing I can say is that, unlike in the romantic comedies where people are consummate parents starting from the moment of birth, in real life it takes time, patience and a lot of wrestling with emotions to become a good parent who puts their child's welfare at least on the same priority level as one's own.
"What men are poets who can speak of Jupiter if he were like a man, but if he is an immense spinning sphere of methane and ammonia must be silent?" - Richard P. Feynman