We had gone back to my hometown with our young son. It was his third visit, but it felt different this time. My parents had spent several days having lunch and dinner with us, and he was beginning to understand that they were part of the family. It was also the first time he would spend a half day without my wife and me.
One afternoon, while our son was napping, my wife and I had to leave home for a few hours. I called my mother and asked her to come over so she could take care of him when he woke up. He woke after about two hours and immediately became very upset when he realized we were gone. My mother knew we were busy, so she did not interrupt us. She did her best to care for him, taking him to lunch and playing with him.
Gradually, he felt better. But when we came home and he saw us, he started crying again and wanted to be held. I think he was still carrying some panic inside him. Food and someone familiar to play with could make things feel fine for a while, but seeing his parents again brought all the emotion back out. He was so young, and maybe he had been holding it together until he saw the people who made him feel safest.
We had gone back to my hometown with our young son. It was his third visit, but it felt different this time. My parents had spent several days having lunch and dinner with us, and he was beginning to understand that they were part of the family. It was also the first time he would spend a half day without my wife and me.
One afternoon, while our son was napping, my wife and I had to leave home for a few hours. I called my mother and asked her to come over so she could take care of him when he woke up. He woke after about two hours and immediately became very upset when he realized we were gone. My mother knew we were busy, so she did not interrupt us. She did her best to care for him, taking him to lunch and playing with him.
Gradually, he felt better. But when we came home and he saw us, he started crying again and wanted to be held. I think he was still carrying some panic inside him. Food and someone familiar to play with could make things feel fine for a while, but seeing his parents again brought all the emotion back out. He was so young, and maybe he had been holding it together until he saw the people who made him feel safest.
