Saturday!...weekend....at last. This last week was hectic. As a single mother of three teenagers life is always hectic. Working enough hours to pay the mortgage and keep the kids supplied with a reasonable amount of G-Star sweaters and Bjorn Borg underwear to ensure their acceptance in the corridors and bike sheds of the high school. After work there's a garden and house, screaming almost as hard as the children for attention. At the same time I am always engaged in this personal battle – on one side there's me and on the other is the washing basket. Just as the bottom of the pile of wash is in sight one of my teenagers decides to clean up. Triumphantly he arrives downstairs laden with a mountain of jeans, t-shirts and odd socks expecting only praise from having finally tidied up his room. That's a normal week. But this week was a marathon!
Not only stress at work, filling in for sick colleagues while we're in the last throes of organizing a symposium. My three day week became a five day, 50 hour affair. My evenings were filled with pilates, two parents evenings at two different schools, choir practice and a birthday celebration. And then ….sigh of relief....Saturday......aaahhhhhh. Not much to do today, no alarm to wake me, bit of shopping, washing, gardening and the thought of spending my evening with my youngest child. My daughter, 13 years old. My sons, 17 and 19, have plans elsewhere as is usual on a Saturday evening. But my daughter is still too young for that. Her weekends are spent at home – generally with me. Mother/daughter quality time.
I had two invitations for this evening. One was to a concert, classical, sounded very nice. The other was to a party. A friend was giving a house warming. But if I had accepted either one then my daughter would have been on her own. She says she doesn't mind... she actually encourages me to go out. But although I do occasionally leave her on her own I don't like to do that too much. At that age you still appreciate a bit of parental attention, right? I was looking forward to an evening with her – rented a DVD, 'Legally Blond' good choice for a 13 year old, potato chips, candle on the table, cola.. but what's this?..Forget it!!
After dinner the boys were soon gone...the film that I had chosen for her is great...if you're 13. One obstacle in the way of our evening together.... she is no longer interested in Saturday evening with Mom... msn has taken my place! There she is, tick, tick, tick on the keyboard... I occasionally see a little laugh, a twinkle in her eye... she is completely absorbed by the conversation.... or should I say chat... or chats. She seems able to carry on a conversation with about 10 different 'contacts' at the same time. If I try to talk she looks at me with a blank expression... humoring me for the appropriate length of time until she can comfortably resume her msn 'chat' without making me feel snubbed. Meanwhile I'm sitting here virtually on my own, watching 'Legally Blond'. And to think I could have been out at a concert... or partying the night away. But no.. even although she seems barely aware of the fact that Iīm here, I choose to believe that on some subconscious level she is very aware and even supported by the fact that her mother is here, but an armīs length away..... should the msn chatters cross the line. Letīs face it, itīs their reality, their world, and what happens there is every bit as stimulating, exciting and, on occasion, threatening, as the contacts we used to have hanging on the street corner.
So just as my mother used to peep through the curtains keeping an eye on me and my friends, I keep an eye on my daughter, on stand by, ready to help, comfort, lend a shoulder, when necessary. My Saturday evening is worthwhile...Iīd rather do this than any concert or party.
Not only stress at work, filling in for sick colleagues while we're in the last throes of organizing a symposium. My three day week became a five day, 50 hour affair. My evenings were filled with pilates, two parents evenings at two different schools, choir practice and a birthday celebration. And then ….sigh of relief....Saturday......aaahhhhhh. Not much to do today, no alarm to wake me, bit of shopping, washing, gardening and the thought of spending my evening with my youngest child. My daughter, 13 years old. My sons, 17 and 19, have plans elsewhere as is usual on a Saturday evening. But my daughter is still too young for that. Her weekends are spent at home – generally with me. Mother/daughter quality time.
I had two invitations for this evening. One was to a concert, classical, sounded very nice. The other was to a party. A friend was giving a house warming. But if I had accepted either one then my daughter would have been on her own. She says she doesn't mind... she actually encourages me to go out. But although I do occasionally leave her on her own I don't like to do that too much. At that age you still appreciate a bit of parental attention, right? I was looking forward to an evening with her – rented a DVD, 'Legally Blond' good choice for a 13 year old, potato chips, candle on the table, cola.. but what's this?..Forget it!!
After dinner the boys were soon gone...the film that I had chosen for her is great...if you're 13. One obstacle in the way of our evening together.... she is no longer interested in Saturday evening with Mom... msn has taken my place! There she is, tick, tick, tick on the keyboard... I occasionally see a little laugh, a twinkle in her eye... she is completely absorbed by the conversation.... or should I say chat... or chats. She seems able to carry on a conversation with about 10 different 'contacts' at the same time. If I try to talk she looks at me with a blank expression... humoring me for the appropriate length of time until she can comfortably resume her msn 'chat' without making me feel snubbed. Meanwhile I'm sitting here virtually on my own, watching 'Legally Blond'. And to think I could have been out at a concert... or partying the night away. But no.. even although she seems barely aware of the fact that Iīm here, I choose to believe that on some subconscious level she is very aware and even supported by the fact that her mother is here, but an armīs length away..... should the msn chatters cross the line. Letīs face it, itīs their reality, their world, and what happens there is every bit as stimulating, exciting and, on occasion, threatening, as the contacts we used to have hanging on the street corner.
So just as my mother used to peep through the curtains keeping an eye on me and my friends, I keep an eye on my daughter, on stand by, ready to help, comfort, lend a shoulder, when necessary. My Saturday evening is worthwhile...Iīd rather do this than any concert or party.
