In the meantime, this is for every Rock Star Mom out there.
When I was about 9 years old, there
was this book that sat on the bathroom vanity called, “I’m Dancing as Fast
as I Can.” It was there for two or
three years before we moved. On the
cover was a blonde lady, as I recall, with a tutu and a pair of jeans, capris
maybe. She didn’t look very happy about
the dancing, exasperated really. I used
to see that book every time I went into the bathroom, two or three times a
day. I didn’t know what the book was about, but I always wondered about the lady on the
book. I could never figure out what was
so bad about all that dancing.
Remember the playpen? No more of that. Young mothers are told to engage their
children and let them explore their environment. Instead of getting your laundry done and dinner
made, you are guilt ridden if you haven’t had several hours of intense learning
play with your child - and yet, the laundry and dinner still await and must be
done, so dance faster.
Junior high and high school are the
pinnacle. You are likely driving your
child to and from school because the bus is just not cool. You are likely commuting to various cities
around the state for travel leagues, picking up poster board on a moment’s
notice, keeping everything at the office under control (just under), and, oh
yes, trying to maintain some form of a relationship with that guy you live with
- your husband. Go, go, go!
Fast forward 30 years and it hit
me. The book wasn’t about dancing, it
was about the life of a busy mom. I’m
sure my mother picked up that book looking to find some solace in it’s pages,
only to find she rarely had time to actually read it. Face it, the book was in the bathroom.
I can only imagine if my mom
felt she was dancing as fast as she could, mother of five at that time (six
later), then I must be spinning circles around Michelle Kwan. I want to take nothing away from my mother’s
generation, but the mother of today is
in a whole new ball game. Whether working full time, part time, or keeping a
career at bay, today’s moms are faced with more on the to do list than ever,
and it all starts with the early years.
Sending your child to preschool
offers some respite from the constant engagement we are expected to perform,
only to find out that you now have fund-raisers, pumpkin night, ice carving,
and several pre-school shows to attend.
Dance faster sister, faster.
By the time your child is in school,
you are juggling school schedules, sport schedules, homework, book reports,
science projects and a truckload of paper every week. You might also be trying to hold a job,
volunteer at school, have an exercise schedule, shop for groceries and return
that book to the library that is four weeks overdue. Speed it up.
Keep in mind this is what happens
when you have one child. Now throw in
one or two more and you are managing overlapping paragraphs. This level of demand has never been seen
before in the history of the world, and yet it is being handled by today’s
mothers on a daily basis. It is an
amazing dance, a whirlwind, but truly amazing.
There are many times in a day that I
feel like the lady on the cover of my mom’s book. I’ve got on a completely mismatched
outfit, and I feel exasperated. I wonder sometimes if I can keep up this
pace. I wonder if I am doing anything
well or just everything mediocre. It is
a busy, busy world for today’s mothers.
The amazing thing, the one thing that often keeps me going, is that I
know I am not in this alone. I am not
alone like the woman on the cover of that book from so many years ago. Every mom I know is handling life at the same
pace and generally managing pretty well.
It is almost as if the world has set a higher standard and we relish in
reaching it. I salute the mother of
today. It is the chorus line that keeps
the world going, and the dance floor is
bigger and better than ever. Despite the
occasional madness of it all, there is no indication that we can’t handle life
in the new millennium.
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