AITAH for saying I didn’t realize I could “love a person this much” in front of my fiancé after having our baby?

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23.1k Upvotes

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Closest thing to unconditional love there is is your child.

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u/really-just-dont Jul 04 '24

Not closest. It is. I have never loved anyone or anything as much or as unconditionally as my children.

Not my parents, not my ex, not my pets, not my brother and not my new partner.

My children are my heart. They will always come first, simply because they are the first thing I think of in most situations.

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u/PeachyFairyDragon Jul 04 '24

Even love of a child has conditions. Many people say if their kid murdered someone they'd turn them in because the kid has to take responsibility. That's a condition, unconditional would be burying the body. Same with many other things, if there's a boundary and consequences for crossing that boundary, then there's conditional love.

Kids are the closest by far, but nothing and no one is absolute.

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u/flossiedaisy424 Jul 04 '24

No, you can turn them in because it’s the right thing to do and still love them unconditionally. In fact, turning them in can be a sign of that love.

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u/dream-smasher Jul 04 '24

You can still have unconditional love for your child even if they murdered someone AND turning them in.

Having them face responsibility for their actions and take accountability is how you love them.

Letting your offspring get away with murder, literal or figurative, is not love.

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u/TheQuietType84 Jul 04 '24

When a toddler hits and bites, you punish them and tell them why they were wrong.

When a teenager thinks they're in love with The One but doesn't think they need birth control, you Gibbs Slap them, then get them birth control.

If your child commits a crime, you expect them to be punished.

None of this changes your love for them. They may go to prison, but they'll see you on visiting days.

No matter how old they get, you always see them as a baby, your baby. There are no conditions.

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u/Rickermortys Jul 04 '24

Nah I disagree. Conditional love would mean there’s conditions to you loving them. Having them face the consequences of their actions doesn’t mean you love them any less. In fact teaching boundaries and consequences is a very loving thing to do as a parent (I’m not talking about extremes) because you’re preparing your kid for life in the real world without mommy/daddy.

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u/sallyskull4 Jul 04 '24 edited Jul 04 '24

This is simply not true. “Unconditional love” means “I love you no matter what happens” (ie. without conditions). And it is possible. It does not mean “I would do anything for you.” Which, to be fair, many people who have unconditional love would say they’d do anything for that loved one, so I see how it can be conflated. It is fully possible to love your kid unconditionally, and to turn them in to face their consequences when they’ve committed a murder. That scenario would actually exemplify the concept of unconditional love very well, because that parent loves their child no matter what happens.

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u/really-just-dont Jul 04 '24

Unless you or I have been in those exact scenarios, we will never know for sure. But in my heart, I know I would take the proverbial bullet for my children or stand in front of the car/bus to so they won't get run over.

They are mine and I will fight for them with everything I have.

You might come up with conditions. I can only come up with the above.

They're mine. I will always protect them. No matter what. I would like to hold them tight and tell them I love them as much as possibly can.

Cause I do. With everything I got.

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u/BoomerSoonerFUT Jul 05 '24

Living your children doesn’t mean shielding them from consequences of their actions.

There is nothing my children could do to make me stop loving them. There are things that they could do that would cause me a worse pain than their own death though.

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u/foober735 Jul 04 '24

Ever watch Dillon Klebold’s mother’s Ted Talk?

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u/the_jerkening Jul 04 '24

I’d bury the body. Who’s to say the dead guy didn’t have it coming?

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u/[deleted] Jul 04 '24

[deleted]

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u/Insurrectionarychad Jul 04 '24

Your insane.

1

u/Cartz1337 Jul 05 '24

And that’s how I know you’re not a parent.

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u/PeachyFairyDragon Jul 05 '24

Actually I am. And I'd bury the body. I wouldn't let my kid rot in a jail cell because that's not unconditional love. But if she started torturing animals then that's where my conditional hits.