I said to him, then: "You can't talk to her like that. Neither can I—remember that I stopped and apologized as soon as I noticed. I was cruel, and I was cowardly, and now I'm REALLY TRYING to make amends. Don't imitate what I do wrong—copy the ways I try to be and do good, not the ways I sometimes fail to. Copy the trying. Learn from the mistakes like I'm trying to, instead of repeating them. OK?" !parenting