Emily Vernon

How far we've come from where we started.

How far our kids have exceeded our achievements.

But maybe the real measure should be proximity.

how close we stayed to the people who mattered, how present we were in the moments that shaped them.

And this guy, this dad was basically saying we text regularly, we video call on birthdays, we meet up for holidays when our schedules align, but the daily rhythm of family life I was working toward, that disappeared while I was busy working.

I mean, firstly, that like, you know, that hit me.

Oh, I could talk about this for a week.

Yeah, that hit me because I was like, I just need to be spending all my time at home.

Which is not the point.

And maybe success as a parent is that your kids are so busy living their own lives and so independent that...

that is a struggle to keep things going and keep a relationship going via messages and all of that.

Yeah.

Exactly.

But I just thought it was interesting that maybe a lot of people, and I'm thinking the same thing, that like you –

You want to push kids and you want them to, like the idea of kids living overseas and all of that is incredible.

But then I'm like, oh, you kind of have to sacrifice that proximity and impromptu family dinners or whatever it is.

And the group chats are the way that we maintain it in 2026, but I don't think it necessarily brings that feeling of closeness that people might be craving.

So my point is sometimes you've got to see people in real life.

It's the without any consequences if I don't that makes a difference.

But no consequences if you don't.