In this moment, as I contemplate the life my son lived in his teens and twenties, I can think of only lost potential. He was nothing, if not charming, and his charm was driven by the genuine love no one taught him to have. It was a love, almost divine—a selfless, genuine kind of love that demanded nothing in return, and people were drawn to it.
The sticking point, I learned, is that charm is the twin sister of manipulation. Both come attractively packaged, appealing to the eye and ear and can be difficult at times to distinguish. When people are drawn to you, you have the power to get what you want from them without giving anything in return other than your attention—and this is heady wine. Continue reading
