"We all know how meticulously new parents look over their new baby to be sure there are no blemishes - no deviations from what they anticipated. But no matter how beautiful the baby is, there are always deviations from what his or her parents anticipated. The greater those deviations the more those parents need to have the opportunity to mourn - mourn the loss of the image of the perfect child they dreamed they would have. They need to work through the sense of disappointment about things that the child is not. They need to give up the image of having the perfect child before they can appreciate the child they really do have." (Many Ways to Say I Love You: Wisdom for Parents and Children from Mister Rogers)
Isn't this so bittersweetly true? When I read this, I felt like crying and smiling at the same time. So beautiful to me.