Image: Brandi Eszlinger

“You see much more of your children once they leave home.” (Lucille Ball)

This quote by the legendary comedienne is true on a couple of different levels. On the one hand, she seems to be talking about the phenomenon of children leaving home only to return asking for help. For this very reason, don’t tell your kids that they can be anything when they grow up. “Unemployed and living in my parents’ basement” isn’t a box they can check on the SAT career option list, and it’s best for them to hear it now rather than later.

One the other hand, Ms. Ball touches on a deeper truth worth considering. Your relationship with your children will grow by leaps and bounds when you can start to truly see them as individuals. This is often easier to do when you give them a chance to experience the world away from you, and that shouldn’t have to wait for them to go off to college. Let it begin — even in small ways — now. You might be surprised by what you see.