The loss of a child is my greatest nightmare.

My wife is already in Heaven.

Mothers all want their sons to grow up to be president, but they don’t want them to become politicians in the process.

I want my kids to see me as Dad, for God’s sake, not a television personality.

Parentage is a very important profession, but no test of fitness for it is ever imposed in the interest of the children.

No matter how prepared you think you are for the death of a loved one, it still comes as a shock, and it still hurts very deeply.

Now that I’m a parent, I understand why my father was in a bad mood a lot.

People wonder aloud about whether I am an okay mother. That is obviously painful because it’s so important to me. It’s hard to hear that people think I’m not a capable mother and a good person, that they just think I’m nuts.

Education commences at the mother’s knee, and every word spoken within hearsay of little children tends toward the formation of character.

When I’m around the kids I feel like I act the most grown-up just because you’re supposed to. And I say things, like every other day, that remind me of my own parents.

Grief is the price we pay for love.

We’re all bombarded with so many dietary messages that it’s hard to find time to sort through all this information, but we do have time to take a look at our kids‘ plates.

I don’t take pictures when I’m with my kids, for the sake of my kids. It’s important when you’re as busy as I am that you give your kids your time when you’re with them, and nothing compromises that. I’ve been lucky enough to have fans that understand that.

You can never really live anyone else’s life, not even your child’s. The influence you exert is through your own life, and what you’ve become yourself.

The person who grieves suffers his passion to grow upon him; he indulges it, he loves it; but this never happens in the case of actual pain, which no man ever willingly endured for any considerable time.

Someday I want to have children and give them all the love I never had.

I understand the importance of bondage between parent and child.

But now, being a parent, I go home and see my son and I forget about any mistake I ever made or the reason I’m upset. I get home and my son is smiling or he comes running to me. It has just made me grow as an individual and grow as a man.

I feel like I’m the kind of guy that would have kids before getting married. The first thing would be kids.

My mother was a full-time mother. She didn’t have much of her own career, her own life, her own experiences… everything was for her children. I will never be as good a mother as she was. She was just grace incarnate. She was the most generous, loving – she’s better than me.

Never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth.

Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grief.

One thing they never tell you about child raising is that for the rest of your life, at the drop of a hat, you are expected to know your child’s name and how old he or she is.

My parents taught me never to judge others based on whom they love, what color their skin is, or their religion.

If you’re the parent, be a parent. You know what I mean? I’m a parent. I have daughters.

Most of us are raised to believe we are ordinary. The anchor of the universe is present in every child. A parent only needs to guide and step aside and let them fulfill their dharma. Help children remember that they can do or be anything.

You must be afraid, my son. That is how one becomes an honest citizen.

You teach your daughters the diameters of the planets and wonder when you are done that they do not delight in your company.

You definitely want your kids to understand their heritage, but I don’t want my kids to just focus on being black. They are people. I don’t want them to judge other people or to be judged. I want them to be good people, so good people will treat them accordingly. I preach that to my kids and everything else falls into place.

We think it’s fun for our kids to have cameos and join us on set, but not to be actors. That’s not our goal for Brad and me at all. I think we would both prefer that they didn’t become actors.

See, people are watching you. Especially your children. They’re taking in every single thing you do. They are like video cameras with legs. And they are always in the record mode. They learn more from what you do than from what you say.

Except for the young or very happy, I can’t say I am sorry for anyone who dies.

Every man casts a shadow; not his body only, but his imperfectly mingled spirit. This is his grief. Let him turn which way he will, it falls opposite to the sun; short at noon, long at eve. Did you never see it?

Remember that children, marriages, and flower gardens reflect the kind of care they get.

Build me a son, O Lord, who will be strong enough to know when he is weak, and brave enough to face himself when he is afraid, one who will be proud and unbending in honest defeat, and humble and gentle in victory.

I still learn, but I think it’s the best thing in life to have a kid.

Never have more children than you have car windows.

Kids are watching us. I experience it every single day. They hang on my every word, what I wear, what I say.

As a father, safety is always a top of mind issue for me.

Always kiss your children goodnight, even if they’re already asleep.

My mother fought cancer for almost a decade and died at 56. She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms. But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was.

My son complains about headaches. I tell him all the time, when you get out of bed, it’s feet first!

Giving responsibility is the key to success with boys, especially with the rowdiest and most difficult boys.

Tears are the silent language of grief.

There’s no tragedy in life like the death of a child. Things never get back to the way they were.

I’m not an analyzer. I’ve got a son that analyzes everything and everybody. But I don’t analyze people.

I had this child, and it destroyed my family.

Our lifestyle was not in any way a negative. That was not the problem. That is and will remain one of the wonderful opportunities we are able to give our children.

People have told me, ‚You shouldn’t bring your daughter onto the podium, ‚cause it’s the workplace,‘ and things like that. But I’m not gonna really listen to that. I’m gonna do what I think is fun for me and my family, and everything’ll be all right.

Children sweeten labours, but they make misfortunes more bitter.

My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.

Do you know what you call those who use towels and never wash them, eat meals and never do the dishes, sit in rooms they never clean, and are entertained till they drop? If you have just answered, ‚A house guest,‘ you’re wrong because I have just described my kids.

You never get over losses. I’ve never gotten over one loss I’ve had in my career. They always stick with me.

It took Simone a long time to understand why people want Daddy’s autograph. I’d tell her, and my wife would tell her, too, ‚People see Daddy in the movies, and they are excited to meet him.‘ But she couldn’t really grasp it.

I read to my kid, but I can’t stand reading.

Feels good to try, but playing a father, I’m getting a little older. I see now that I’m taking it more serious and I do want that lifestyle.

Brad and I have never wanted our kids to be actors, but we also want them to be around film and be a part of Mommy and Daddy’s life and for it not to be kept from them, either. We just want them to have a good, healthy relationship with it.

We make the Sabbath a delight when we teach the gospel to our children.

Creative people don’t behave very well generally. If you’re looking for examples of good relationships in show business, you’re gonna be depressed real fast. I don’t have time for anything else right now but work and my daughter. She’s my first priority.

The one thing I want to leave my children is an honorable name.

That’s the most terrible thing about being an author – standing there at your mother’s funeral, but you don’t switch the author off. So your own innermost thoughts are grist for the mill. Who was it said – one of the famous lady novelists – ‚unhappy is the family that contains an author‘?