The Reluctant Parent’s Guide to Raising Good Humans

Years ago, I met up with a couple of friends from high school. We had our kids with us, so we visited a local science and activity center. While our kids played, we talked about parenting. At one point, I said, “Wow! It’s weird that we are definitely not kid people, but we had kids.” One of my friends nodded and said, “Actually, that’s what makes us good parents. We raise our kids not to be obnoxious to others.”

She was on to something. I had never thought of it that way, but I did raise my s...