This is a really poignant article, and thank you for inspiring me to have a talk with my son about it. Interestingly, he didn't feel like it was too big a deal... but I know I certainly did.

When the pandemic hit he was only four years old, and as much as I loved sharing the same space (we've never had a separate "office") and being around for pivotal moments, I really struggled with getting him to understand that sometimes I could pay attention to him, and sometimes I just couldn't. Sometimes it was viscerally painful to tell him "no, not now" and see him crestfallen, and it was particularly difficult if he persisted while I was working under pressure or in meetings (or in the middle of a presentation to my whole department with him literally jumping up and down in front of me).

Over the years it got easier, but even now, I'm working remotely at least once a week, and while at nine years old it's much less of a big deal than it was when he was younger, we still have plenty of moments where he enthusiastically comes to share something with me while I'm deeply focused, or in a meeting, and his disappointment is palpable.

I do, however, always make a point of getting back to him as soon as I can be available again, and I feel like that's made the difference in his perception of "importance" vs "timing".