It is possible that you, like me, have been feeling a bit stressed lately. Upset stomach in knots, grinding the teeth at night, muscles tense, feeling a desire to flee? I would check off all of the above boxes. Why on earth am I so stressed out?
Change.
Yup. That's all it is. Nothing disastrous is happening in my life. In fact, if you looked at it from an outsider's perspective, you'd probably think it looks pretty damn good. Nothing much to complain about. But then again, nothing ever stays the same.
Our summer was not perfect. Far from it. I already informed you about my teenaged daughter spending the entire eight weeks on the couch. Sure, she got up on occasion. She became vertical in order to go to the mall once. And there was her first "pop" concert featuring one of her idols. Although I was not impressed with her initiative, I nevertheless got used to the status quo. Lots of sleeping late followed by lots of lazing around. So back-to-school time was a vicious smack in the face for all of us.
Getting up at 6am, in the dark, is now the new norm. At least I know my daughter is vertical for most of the day. But that girl is also GRUMPY! Since she needs to be nice and pleasant to her teachers and friends all day long, who gets the brunt of her anger? You guessed it. Her loving parents.
And then there are all the new courses. The Spanish that has been completely forgotten. The math that has gotten even harder. The A.P. courses with so much reading and note-taking even her poor parents want to cry. If you are raising teenagers, you know what I'm talking about. There should be a HELP LINE for stressed out parents.
Of course, all these things I'm whining about, I should actually be grateful for. I'm lucky to have two daughters who are healthy and smart, who study difficult subjects and manage to maintain good grades, who work hard (most of the time) and really do care about doing well. In some ways, I wish we could invent an instrument to help us look into the future so we might know if we're on the right path, and if everything turns out well in the end. It's so hard to know whether we're doing the right things or completely screwing up. Only time will tell.
But the joy is in the journey, right? Because it is all journey, up until the last breath. There is no end in sight. And no matter how we attempt to shape and mold our resistant offspring, they remain resolutely themselves. So we better enjoy this bumpy journey. And quit all this worthless whining!
Change.
Yup. That's all it is. Nothing disastrous is happening in my life. In fact, if you looked at it from an outsider's perspective, you'd probably think it looks pretty damn good. Nothing much to complain about. But then again, nothing ever stays the same.
Our summer was not perfect. Far from it. I already informed you about my teenaged daughter spending the entire eight weeks on the couch. Sure, she got up on occasion. She became vertical in order to go to the mall once. And there was her first "pop" concert featuring one of her idols. Although I was not impressed with her initiative, I nevertheless got used to the status quo. Lots of sleeping late followed by lots of lazing around. So back-to-school time was a vicious smack in the face for all of us.
Getting up at 6am, in the dark, is now the new norm. At least I know my daughter is vertical for most of the day. But that girl is also GRUMPY! Since she needs to be nice and pleasant to her teachers and friends all day long, who gets the brunt of her anger? You guessed it. Her loving parents.
And then there are all the new courses. The Spanish that has been completely forgotten. The math that has gotten even harder. The A.P. courses with so much reading and note-taking even her poor parents want to cry. If you are raising teenagers, you know what I'm talking about. There should be a HELP LINE for stressed out parents.
Of course, all these things I'm whining about, I should actually be grateful for. I'm lucky to have two daughters who are healthy and smart, who study difficult subjects and manage to maintain good grades, who work hard (most of the time) and really do care about doing well. In some ways, I wish we could invent an instrument to help us look into the future so we might know if we're on the right path, and if everything turns out well in the end. It's so hard to know whether we're doing the right things or completely screwing up. Only time will tell.
But the joy is in the journey, right? Because it is all journey, up until the last breath. There is no end in sight. And no matter how we attempt to shape and mold our resistant offspring, they remain resolutely themselves. So we better enjoy this bumpy journey. And quit all this worthless whining!
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