A mother's job... is very much to hold back the coming of manhood.

The boy and the man must be raised to see the possibility of self worth, then meet a few others who provide the vision of a road toward it, then spend a lifetime pursing that worth through action and relationship. One of the great tragedies in human life is to be born a male and not be guided toward the value of a man.

Our youth want less adult contact if that co ntacttreats them like boys. They want more adult contact that treats them like young men. Tired as they are of the former, they are hungry for the latter

Boys need to learn the value of spiritual solitude. For the soul to grow, it needs those moments of no-stimulation, of wakeful peace. Because we adults don't usually practice enough solitude—because we are always 'doing' things—we often neglect to teach our boys to find solitude

A mother's job... is very much to hold back the coming of manhood.

If we create a generation of men who aren't getting an education, that's bad for women.

Jed Diamond is, quite simply, one of the wisest men writing today on the topic of male emotional and physical health.