If you can, please go on.
I've made many mistakes, but I do want to be the best possible parent.
Well. I could keep listing things. But the most important thing, without question, is to know I was loved and cared for. Words alone mean nothing. Especailly in the case of someone in my position, questioning why thier orginal mother left them at the age of 1 & half years old or at whatever age.
Everything else is secondary. Medical, school, activities, clothes, food, a house. As important as they are, as obligations and in survival. If there is no love. There is nothing the child will learn that is truly positive. There is no real safety. It's just a prison then. And that child is a inmate til 18 years old.
Though depending on the psychological damage. That child could be a prisoner well into adulthood, in thier own head.
I know. Preaching love and care sounds like a no brainer. But it's SOOO important on so many levels. Kids are going to be impressionative. They will be looking to thier parents for guidance both verbally and through non-verbal body language. How you, as a parent, handle life situations, people, and so many other things. Beyond giving them positive reinforcement.
What about attention? Yeah. A child needs plenty of it. But love holds a slightly larger bearing, than even that. There is such a thing as bad/negative attention. Typically because a child does something wrong. If they only get attention in those moments. They will act out more, thinking it's the only way to get it. Because they feel you don't care enough, otherwise.
This is all from the top of my head. Though, it's from experience dealing with less than favorable parents in the long run. Not that I actively tried to get in trouble for attention, personally. I just did dumb stuff that got me in trouble alot, even though I tried to avoid it.