The revelation came to Oliver during a week-long course at the Hoffman Institute, where he spent time “unpacking the patterns that have been put upon you from your parents” and learning about the concept of “negative love.” And the whole week was a “perspective shifter” for him, especially about his relationship with dad Bill, who split with Goldie in 1982.
Oliver and sister Kate have often talked about the difficulties they faced following their parent’s divorce, including the feeling of abandonment because of their father’s absence. But Oliver is still able to find the positives in their relationship.
“When I was with him it was incredible,” he continued. “He paid attention to me, we played football, we played basketball, we were on the beach, he taught me how to fish.”
Adding, “He was so present, but he was never there, you know what I mean?”
As for Goldie, she has previously shared how she worked hard to develop a close relationship with her children, telling Today that she did that by “loving, paying attention, listening, being there, caring, and [focusing] on them.”
“Mothers are everything,” she continued. “I feel that I’m everything to them and, of course, they’re everything to me.”