In the heart of every parent lives the tightly
coiled nightmare that his child will die. It might spring at logical
times—when a toddler runs into the street, say—or it might sneak up in
quieter moments. The fear is a helpful evolutionary motivation for
parents to protect their children, but it's haunting nonetheless. The ancient Stoic philosopher Epictetus advised
parents to indulge that fear. “What harm is it, just when you are
kissing your little child, to say: Tomorrow you will die?” he wrote in his Discourses.
-The Atlantic
