My Space, Ten Times a Week
In terms of work/life balance, it's nice that though I have a demanding job and parent two kids, I rarely have to do both at the same time. I don't get how parents can "work from home" while watching their kids; there's no way I'd be able to do either justice. But the flip side of keeping my two sets of responsibilities separate is that pretty much from 6 in the morning to 8 at night, 7 days a week I'm on the clock on one of the two things.
The one regular exception is the space between day care and work. After I drop off the kids but before I arrive at work, and in reverse on the way home, that's four blocks and about six or seven minutes all to myself. Sure, I have to contend with people teasing me for pushing an empty stroller, and I can't get completely lost in the clouds lest I get hit by a car or biker. And sometimes I'm preoccupied with what's immediately next: a looming deadline if heading into the office, or chores that await me if heading home.
But usually, I can be completely free of either my job or my kids. It's my time to daydream about sports, to figure out when my next personal getaway will be, to resolve some interpersonal dilemma that I haven't otherwise had room to work through. Sometimes I think about what I want to say to a friend or colleague, sometimes I talk to God, and sometimes I mumble to myself. Regardless, it's my space, ten times a week.
The one regular exception is the space between day care and work. After I drop off the kids but before I arrive at work, and in reverse on the way home, that's four blocks and about six or seven minutes all to myself. Sure, I have to contend with people teasing me for pushing an empty stroller, and I can't get completely lost in the clouds lest I get hit by a car or biker. And sometimes I'm preoccupied with what's immediately next: a looming deadline if heading into the office, or chores that await me if heading home.
But usually, I can be completely free of either my job or my kids. It's my time to daydream about sports, to figure out when my next personal getaway will be, to resolve some interpersonal dilemma that I haven't otherwise had room to work through. Sometimes I think about what I want to say to a friend or colleague, sometimes I talk to God, and sometimes I mumble to myself. Regardless, it's my space, ten times a week.
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