As school children, we all wrote the infamous "what do you want to be when you grow up" essay. Most of our responses described what our family envisioned or the juvenile hero/heroine fantasy of following in the career footsteps of our parents.
I recall that I marveled at the speed of my mother's fingers and the ease with which she deciphered those little squigglies I later learned were shorthand. I was so impressed at her transcriptionist skills and though she was proud of her education and business training, she encouraged me to aim higher. "You have to be better than me. That's why I work so hard, so you can be better and smarter than me." Many years into my own professional experience, I finally understood what she meant.
"Growing up happens when you start having things you look back on and wish you could change." ~ Cassandra Clare
Little did we know as children how much our parents were juggling and sacrificing. With just 24 hours of breath, sometimes 10 to 14 of them were devoted solely to earning a living. In addition, there was bill paying and budgeting, meal planning and grocery shopping, house keeping and home repair, homework help and teacher conferences, laundry, doctor appointments, birthday parties and family time. All of which left little time for making self a priority. Yet without attention to self care, the must do lists are just dreaded chores that become impossible to manage over time.
"Where'd the days go, when all we did was play? And the stress that we were under wasn't stress at all just a run and a jump into a harmless fall." ~ Paolo Nutini
I chose a different career path and I am pleased I was given the freedom to do so. As a mother, my advice to my children will be the same I was given with one caveat.
Seek balance.
As you regroup and look forward to a new work week, reflect upon that long ago essay and the work to which you find yourself committed and consider where creating balance might be necessary.
What holds true today from your original essay?
How are you spending your 24 hours of Breath?
Are you in need of greater balance between your work and personal lives?
