"I remember being in tears at the hospital after Chloe was born, at the thought that someday she would have to leave home"

The words spoken by Candice Bergen reveal the depth of a parent’s love and the complexity of parental emotions, especially in the earliest days of a child’s life. Holding her newborn daughter, Bergen is already acutely aware of the passage of time, the stark reality that the little girl she is cradling in her arms will one day grow up, become independent, and eventually leave the family home. The image of a mother shedding tears in the hospital is not just about the exhaustion and emotional high that often follow childbirth, but also about an anticipatory grief that shades the brightest moments, the understanding that parenthood is a long process of loving and letting go.

The feeling described is not uncommon among new parents, but Bergen articulates it with particular poignancy. The mere presence of her child, so new and dependent, calls forth thoughts of the future, of first steps, school years, growing friendships, and finally, the day when her daughter will set out into the world alone. The anticipation of that eventual separation is so powerful that it moves her to tears, even while the bond between them is as physically and emotionally close as it can ever be.

Bergen’s reflection underlines the paradox inherent in parenthood: to nurture a child is to guide them toward independence, to raise them in such a way that they are confident and able to leave. The feeling is bittersweet, blending pride with a profound sense of impending loss. In this one private moment, the connection between mother and child is fused with a premonition of the inevitable independence that will come. It is a testament to how deeply parents feel the passing of time, and how the joy of welcoming a child into the world is always tinged by the realization that, one day, that child will step out to discover their own path, away from the safety and comfort of home.