05/25/2020
Let me start by saying I deeply love my kids (weird to even have to type this, but I sense a qualifier will save me from a few trolls). I have very intentionally built a life around having the flexibility in my work to spend a lot of time with them and for that I'm grateful.
However, like so many other parents, the reality is that children are best raised in community. Ya know, that proverbial village that everyone pines for, especially early postpartum. This is obviously not our collective reality right now and as much as I want to stay optimistic, I'm grieving.
I'm grieving the loss of socialization, the loss of having a break, the loss of my (very limited to begin with) alone time and work time, the pending restructuring of schools into veritable isolation chambers (read the new CDC guidelines), the loss of visits from grandparents... Honestly, this is the short list.
A friend of mine who does not have kids said she wondered if kids from this generation will be better adjusted because they will have more one-on-one time with their parents. Maybe that will be the case for some kids. But largely, I disagree.
Aside from the economic hardships and staggering rise in child abuse in worst case scenarios, even the lucky kids from stable homes are feeling this. Big time. And parents? We’re exhausted and arguably not able to be the best parents (or maybe that’s just me 🤷🏻♀️).
I aim to post content that's helpful, uplifting, or research focused, but lately that's just not in the cards. Not only because I have virtually zero work time in my now non-existent schedule, but because I can't pretend this will all just pass us by. This is hard for everyone, but I really think this is exponentially harder for parents. I see you. I grieve with you.
How are you holding up?