Someone asked “How do single moms deal with raising kids alone”

The full question from Quora was as follows:

How do single moms deal with their child(ren) growing up without their father? How do they better equip their kids to deal with this situation?

And here’s my answer.

After writing this I realized more people could benefit.

“The best advice that I received and followed was this: Your children will respond to events in the way they see you respond. You teach them the attitude to approach anything in life.
So start there.

Start by adopting a determined and resilient attitude. It doesn’t absolve the father of his responsibility. It does not diminish that he has chosen to do less than what he should, but it allows you and the children to flourish without the phantom of “absent father.”

Don’t teach and don’t allow others to teach them that this is a deficit for them. Instead, adopt the attitude that every person must make choices and that he chose to not be present, so he must deal with the guilt and absence of his children. He chooses to miss the greatness that they are and will grow into.
Teach them to respond to those who show up for them.
Teach them that family is who shows up.