Yes, kids are a wonderful thing! As parents we love them a great deal. We enjoy spending quality time with them and a nice family trip together is a joy to behold. I even suppose that in June we are glad they get to take a nice little break from school so they can rest, relax, and maybe even do some chores around the house. It all starts out so wonderful and innocent. Then the relentless torment of unending juvenile freedom settles in for the long, hot summer days and the dark clouds of summer break turn into an unending storm of "too much of a good thing."
Late nights turn into later nights. Work night noise turns into work night pandemonium. The household chores, well.... they seem to get lost in the shuffle. Waking up to breakfast and a clear, cool morning turns into kids waking up as the heat of the day settles in looking for lunch (and when they can't find it, the routine phone call to work or complaints of starvation are heard round the world.
I have to admit, when I was in my K-12 years (a long time ago), my summer life was not all that different than that of my kids now. I went to bed late, got up late, lounged around waiting for something to do, and probably drove my parents crazy too. That's all fine and dandy but the bigger issue for me today is that I am now the parent. Its irrelevant what torture I put my parents through, if any (my memory is fading as expected for people my age), because its me who has to figure out how to get to sleep through the noise and chaos. My parents role is to laugh at my wife and me when we share our tales of woe and agony. They are not very empathetic; I don't get it. They literally laugh while we cry. It all seems so unfair.
So, is it any wonder that as the new school year settles in around us, parents everywhere are starting to kick back on their recliners to settle in for the school year break. I know, the school year brings its own challenges like endless homework wars, getting kids out of bed in time for first period battles, and the frequent trips to games, parent-teacher conferences, meetings, activities, hanging out sessions, and all of the other fun....Okay, I just remembered that in parenthood, there is no rest for the weary. The school year is as bad or worse than the summer break--same challenges, different time of the year. Never mind....no break for parents after all.
 |
| [Though related to me, these teens are only represented here as possible examples of my points in this Article] |
I have to admit, when I was in my K-12 years (a long time ago), my summer life was not all that different than that of my kids now. I went to bed late, got up late, lounged around waiting for something to do, and probably drove my parents crazy too. That's all fine and dandy but the bigger issue for me today is that I am now the parent. Its irrelevant what torture I put my parents through, if any (my memory is fading as expected for people my age), because its me who has to figure out how to get to sleep through the noise and chaos. My parents role is to laugh at my wife and me when we share our tales of woe and agony. They are not very empathetic; I don't get it. They literally laugh while we cry. It all seems so unfair.
So, is it any wonder that as the new school year settles in around us, parents everywhere are starting to kick back on their recliners to settle in for the school year break. I know, the school year brings its own challenges like endless homework wars, getting kids out of bed in time for first period battles, and the frequent trips to games, parent-teacher conferences, meetings, activities, hanging out sessions, and all of the other fun....Okay, I just remembered that in parenthood, there is no rest for the weary. The school year is as bad or worse than the summer break--same challenges, different time of the year. Never mind....no break for parents after all.
No comments:
Post a Comment