Yesterday’s live video chat with Jessica Reed Kraus was personal. We talked about what it’s like to be working moms of sons. She has four. I have two.
Jess wrote at the weekend that one of her sons had a bad accident, when a car hit him on the moped he was riding and he flipped into the air before falling on the tarmac, where he convulsed. Hours later, in the hospital, it would emerge he was, miraculously, unharmed, but not before Jess and the brother who witnessed it had feared the worst.
I know exactly what she must have felt.
When something like that happens to our kids, it stops us in our tracks and makes us question if we are doing the right thing, going at breakneck speed, following the news, making choices everyday that take us out of the family orbit and into a lane that is exhilarating, fascinating, addictive, but also, one could make the case, selfish.
Jess works harder than anyone else I know. And, like me, she loves what she does professionally. She says in our conversation, that she wishes she didn’t need to take time out to sleep!! (I, on the other hand, love my sleep!)
We talk about the toll that juggling takes on our bodies (she has hives, I have a pinched nerve in my neck); what we try to do for ourselves ( I read fiction. I highly recommend Ian McEwan’s latest book What We Can Know). Jess and I have both watched The Girlfriend on Amazon Prime. Essential viewing for moms of sons!)
So this conversation is for all of you out there, who go for it professionally, who search for an identity that isn’t just being a parent, but who also love their kids, want to be the best parent possible and who know that while life isn’t perfect, in fact it’s a bit of a muddle, nonetheless we do our best!
Thank you
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