“The wounds our parents make can leave the ugliest scars. But they can also teach us what not to do. If you burn your hand on the stove, do you just give up ever using it again?” The circular motion stops and I give him a blank stare. He does know cooking is not my thing, right? Luckily, he doesn’t expect an answer. “No. You learn not to put your bare hand on a hot stove the next time you cook. You’re more careful, more thoughtful, more prepared. Our parents influence who we are, but we choose who we become. Their mistakes don’t have to be ours.”
