We need someone, anyone, to rescue us from the stark loneliness and alienation. We want some of life’s good stuff. But all that’s around us—inside us—is pain. We feel so helpless and uncertain. Others look so powerful and assured. We’re convinced that the magic is in them. So we become dependent on them. We can become dependent on lovers, spouses, friends, parents, or our children. We become dependent on their approval. We become dependent on their presence. We become dependent on their need for us. We become dependent on their love, even though we believe we’ll never receive their love
...more
