It is probably all about this special relationship between daughters and their fathers.
Nicley illustrated here:
It isn't just daughters, although I quite ready accept that the problem is most evident in the father<->daughter relationship. The only time that parents even begin to get an inkling that their children aren't children anymore is around about the time that they realise that a child is in fact (1) earning more than they ever did, and (2) has more responsibility then they ever did. So, generally sometime in the "child's" fourties, if ever.
It
is nowhere as simple as that. Any dad who's ever actually changed a diaper knows... part of the imprinting cycle in male parents includes (right next to the
"wrapped around her little finger" hardcoding for girls) a hardwired rage response towards the cause whenever his "little one" is sad for any reason.
Not being that kind of overprotective... the "balanced protectiveness" subroutine... is something that that is evidently part of that leg of the one X-chromosome which is broken off to make it a Y-chromosome. Yes, some moms have the same problem... but the "balanced protectiveness" thing seems to be something that almost never happens in males.
Every generation (well, every one that follows mother nature's core design; as with all things, there are some exceptions) comes to terms with the fact that in some part, they will
always be the "little ones" to their parents... because as the parents age and grow and learn the lessons that come with every stage of life, they see their kids following and learning the same lessons they learned a decade or two later. If a parent actually pays any attention to their offspring this cycle never ends, right up to and including coming to terms with one's own mortality and preparing one's offspring for that last shared experience.
So yes... I can totally see myself having "the talk" with every suitor who comes to see my daughter... and it shall most likely include snapping a pic of the driver's license (she's never going out unsupervised with any boy who isn't at least
that responsible and prepared for life) & it will most likely end with
"...and if you make her cry, I WILL make YOU cry."mnem
Life: It's a killer ride.