Reply to How to deal with parents & in-laws who just don't get that we're busy?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Anyone else think "awwww" after reading the text from OP's dad?
OP, be honest with yourself. You really can't find time to return a text or email to your father? As in, can't find 2 minutes on your day to write a little friendly note to an elderly man who lives across country that you see once a year?
I have timed how long it took me to write this, and it's less than 2 minutes now. 
[b]Maybe you need to take an honest assessment of what your priorities are, and admit he is not one of them instead of saying how busy you are.[/b]
If you really want to make an effort, here is an idea: set aside time every day at an " off" time, such as waiting in carpool line, when you climb into bed at night, maybe you have a weekly appointment or something that you sit in a waiting room for, pick up from kids activity, whatever, and dedicate that time, those few minutes, to your father [/quote]

Look up "revealed preferences."  I think it's a good analogy for people who claim that they care about their families but are somehow always too busy to actually talk to them or spend time with them.

I call my parents once a week at least.  Because it's important to me.  Yes, I'm really busy, but we all make time for the things that really matter to us.  I often call my mom during my walk to pick up my daughter from daycare--that's ten minutes we can chat once or twice a week.  Both my husband and I call our parents on Sunday nights after the kids are in bed.  If we've got some down time, we'll do a Skype session with the kids.

Pick a time, once a week, and give your dad a call.  He misses you.  If you talked to him regularly, he would probably be happy with ten minutes a week, but it sounds like he never knows when he's going to talk to you, and his efforts to reach out are unsuccessful.  Find a time that works for you, maybe a time when you're walking somewhere or otherwise waiting for something, and make that your weekly chat.  [/quote]

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