Tuesday 31 July 2018

Cherish this time with your children



Don’t give up and lose the chance

I enjoyed baking last Saturday. I made muffins, a sponge-cake, biscuits and cheese-puffs. But there were two things missing: my Kenwood ‘chef’ (the motor burned out – not surprisingly after 40 years hard work) and my kids. When they were small, I used to wait until they were all otherwise occupied, then I would sneak into the kitchen to bake – but as soon as they heard the whirring of the mixer, they scrambled into the kitchen with their chairs to ‘help’ me.

They vied to spoon in the flour, break the eggs and measure the vanilla essence. Mostly they fought over ‘licking the bowl’ that was divided into quarters so there was no fighting – which there invariably was. Back then I longed for the day when I could ‘do my own thing’. Now that the kids have all left the coop (and are probably longing for peace and quiet of their own) I have the liberty (well sort of …) to do my own thing.

Bringing up children is hugely sacrificial. Time, money, ‘space’, sleep and privacy don’t belong to you anymore. You have no choice but to share these with your family. Everything you do, from the time you open your eyes in the morning till you flop exhausted into your bed at night, is for your kids.

But he rewards are out of this world. They make every sacrifice worthwhile.

Here’s a poem I found in my diary, written by my daughter when she was a teenager.

Say something, picture it as a marathon
Keep it to yourself, and once your plan is in action
Share it with the one who shows an interest in your progress.
Love
Devotion
Feelings
Emotion.
Don’t be afraid to be weak
Don’t be too proud to be strong
Just look into yourself and seek
And if the return to yourself is the return of who you are,
That’s OK.
If you want to laugh
Or if you need to cry
Just believe in yourself
Believe and don’t deny
Don’t care what people say
Just follow your heart
Don’t give up and lose the chance.

My advice to all you mom’s out there? Cherish every moment with your children, listen to what they have to say, laugh with them and enjoy discovering the world around them, with them. Hold onto memory jolters – their scribbles, drawings and photographs. These will be as rare and precious as diamonds one day, that I can promise you.