I have no excuses.
Life is good. Except when it's not. And, there are varying degrees of not.
I have been trying to stay on the gerbil wheel of MUST-GET-DONES while juggling the demands of work in an age of cutbacks. People everywhere are asked to do more with less, and be grateful they have the work. It's become a "suck-it-up buttercup" world.
I am a juggler on a gerbil wheel. I just bet if I google it, some clever person will have drawn a cartoon of that.
To cope with these demands, I've decided to be a "good-enough mom." Here's how it looks (in case you too dream of being a good-enough mom):
Lunches made (not a lot of variety, because it's easier to throw together the same thing every day). Clothes washed (but not ironed). Aidan bathed and hair washed and the big boys nagged into the shower (but didn't get on them to floss their teeth). Homework completed (but not inspiring gold stars). School drop-offs (but not always on time).
Laugh with the boys (but let the dishes pile up in the sink).
Life is good enough, but the juggler on the gerbil wheel is tired now. So when I was at the school this morning and heard one of the mom's say, "that's so retarded!" I thought to myself, "let that go." But I didn't want to. I didn't want to let it slide because she's a really nice mom.. A sweet and generous mom. And she deserved to be educated about how it makes people in our little community feel.
(Kind of like somebody just stuck a stick in the gerbil wheel, and the juggler is out of control, and all those important and not-important things the juggler has been tossing around and keeping going are in danger of falling and colliding and going off in all directions.)
So, today, I stopped a very good mom who used the R-Word, and asked her to rethink how she uses it.
Then, I felt horrible for the rest of the day.
Some days, no matter what you say, it just doesn't feel good enough.
2 comments:
WHAT? Is it really YOU? WELCOME BACK!!!! I'm so glad to see you posting again. :-)
And what an incredible analogy - you created a real vision in my head and made me stop and think. About the other mom, I would feel terrible all day, too, but you've got to remember you made a *difference.* Not just to Aidan and other people affected by the word, but to that mother herself. She learned something, and while she probably felt bad about it, she probably went home feeling *happy* that you said something, that she learned something, that she *understood* something new. Good job!!
Hey Becca - it really is me! Not sure if I am back as a regular - but it sure felt good to write last night :o)
Post a Comment