When I decided to move across the country on a quest for “a dog, a car, and a boyfriend,” I was actually searching for someone to like me the best. Not me the only and not me above themselves…. But to be someone’s favorite.

I started the “energy” thing as a way to avoid punishing him for doing perfectly normal four-year-old things that drive me up the wall, like running away when it’s time to leave or refusing to brush his teeth at bedtime.