The Ruler From 1990: How My Tough Love Drowned My Son

Dad. I promise. Go rest your back.”

I stood there, feeling victorious. Finally, I thought. He gets it. He needed a little tough love to wake him up.

I went to bed feeling like a good father who had set his son straight.

The next morning, the house was silent. A thick, heavy silence that felt wrong.

I woke up at 6:00 AM, ready to drag him out of bed to continue reading …