Why Children Are Like Books

My daughter's been home for a week now from L.A., and is heading back tomorrow.  And I got to thinking this week that kids are a bit like the books we write. 

We do all kinds of prep work before they get here, and finishing that d@*& book has gotta be right up there with the birthing process.  It takes a lot of work, a lot of time, and there are a whole bunch of people involved. 

Revision is like raising the kid.  Wondering if you're doing the right thing, if you should say this or that, and when someone gives you advice, wondering if you should take it or stick to your guns and do what **you** think is right, consequences be damned.  In the end you know you missed a few things, but you hope you got it right most of the time.

Then you send your little work of art, be it a child or a book, out into the cold, cruel world.  All you can do at that point is pray that yes, you did get at least some of it right, and that someone, somewhere out there will stop and look and say 'Hey, you didn't completely screw that up.  This is actually pretty good.'

Because with books and kids, you generally don't get a second chance to fix things. 

My daughter, bless her heart, has actually told me (now that she's past the age-18-I-know-everything-in-the-world stage) that some of the stuff I told her has turned out to be TRUE!!  Yes, the landlord wants the rent at the first of the month.  No, you cannot show up late to work on a continuing basis and expect to keep your job.  And your older brother may have seemed like a turd-breath (her term, not mine) when you were younger, but he's actually a pretty cool guy as an adult. 

And that, my friends, is like getting a five-star review.