My mother can certainly be rough around the edges at times, but she also taught me to have compassion for people who have been wronged. She taught me to empathize with those who have made mistakes. LZ Granderson More Quotes by LZ Granderson More Quotes From LZ Granderson As a newspaper reporter, I covered and was around a fair number of crime scenes involving juvenile delinquents, and few things bothered me more than listening to their parents. Crying, ranting, proclaiming how great their children were despite being kicked out of school or previous run-ins with the law. LZ Granderson parents great me children Children may be born angels, but with all the temptations out there in the world, it takes work to try to keep them that way. LZ Granderson work children way world Of all the parts that make up my somewhat quirky life, there are few things that raise a stranger's eyebrows faster than discovering I love country music. LZ Granderson music love life country Believe me, I recognize the cultural and anatomical challenges and respect the sacrifices women make in order to balance family and a career, or family with no career, or career with no family. LZ Granderson me women respect family Women may think men have it all, but only because we've been socialized to express the emotions that are tied to this reality differently, which is to say, men are not to express the emotions that are tied to it. LZ Granderson think women men reality There is no way to physically always be there for your children and always be at the office and always be present for your significant other and then take care of yourself. The laws of physics necessitate that somebody or some thing is going to get the short end of the stick. LZ Granderson yourself care children way I haven't dunked since Bill Clinton was in office, so I'm just happy for anyone who can do so without a trampoline. LZ Granderson without just office happy Just because we want our favorite team to win does not mean there's any lack of toughness when a player chooses family first. LZ Granderson just-because win family team I don't begrudge a coach for trying to get all that he or she can. I don't resent a school feeling it needs to pay to keep top talent. I'm just afraid to think where all of this will end up because the overall impact seems to be stretching far beyond the scoreboard. LZ Granderson feeling think talent school I'm all for holding each other accountable, but it feels as if we're hurling toward a society of finger-pointers, because we don't hold ourselves accountable for anything. LZ Granderson hold anything because society If children can't handle competition when it's necessary, or take some criticism, or never strive to be better because their parents inadvertently programmed them to believe they are already the best even when they're not, then they are in for some serious shocks and bumps down the road. LZ Granderson parents best competition children Sure, the job of high school teachers is not to tear down students' self-esteem. But it's certainly not to inflate students' sense of self-worth with a bunch of unearned compliments and half-truths. LZ Granderson teachers down job school Growing up, I didn't know anything about money other than we didn't have any. LZ Granderson anything know growing-up money