We don't realize that everything we do is a never ending routine, until finally the people we care about have their own world.
Also many parents only realize when their children are not their children anymore. They returned to the position like their parents who were also late to wake up.
That this cycle is always going on and can never be broken, because many children lose their parents more quickly when they were young.
I also find it difficult to make time for my little ones because of work responsibilities, just like my father used to be. Even though at that time I really wanted my father to be present and not just wave his hand.
But I once cried happily when my father caught up with me without telling him in advance where I was camping.
Hope we and all our children are doing well.
Everything works in cycles, it is the length of the cycles that seem to vary. I suspect I am not the only one spending too much time working and I know I am not the worst by a long way. However, I also know people who don't spend enough time working - it is a different kind of neglect.