David Chernow

In 5 days, both of my kids will have left for college. I remember so much of my time with them. I worked hard at being present and putting the time in with them. I also remember all the stages. And, so another stage begins…for all of us.

My wife and I have made the decision that it is our duty to allow our children the freedom to experience life from the driver’s seat and not as a passenger.

If you don’t believe in reincarnation this part might be hard to understand…but we all come into this life as a consciousness or soul that has had many experiences through various times and places. You have created relationships and experiences that flow through different lives. Realizing this, how can we assume responsibility for our children’s plans and contracts…by not allowing them the freedom to experience failure or success or heartache or disappointment or accomplishment, we hijack their potential to evolve.

I have 2 children, Jake and Blair.  Julie and I both remember the day both were conceived and of course the day they were delivered.  Both have grown up in the same household, with the same parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts and cousins.  They both have attended the same schools and in some cases have had the same teachers.  What we have done for one, we have done for the other, including family vacations, friend and family get-togethers, holidays and special events.  And, neither of us play favorites, and so here is the $64,000 dollar, no, maybe today, because of inflation it is the $640,000 question “Why are my children so different”?

There was a time when I believed I knew “Who” I was

Comfortable with the quiet in my mind

And the dependable spin of the World

Soon, destiny would speak

For a number of years, depending on whether we could get a babysitter earlier in our marriage, myself and my wife have a Date Night.  For a few hours, usually on Thursday night, we go out to dinner and just spend some time with each other, and although 90% of the time the conversation focuses on our children, we make the effort to spend alone time together. 

After graduating law school, I moved to New York. I wanted to be an actor. And, after 20 years of sitting in a classroom I was going to take some classes that I was truly passionate about.  I enrolled in The Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and then needed to find a job.

I found a classified ad for a houseman. I went on the interview and got the job.