The phrase "working mom" is always a little funny. What mom isn't working? Whether she receives a paycheck or not from a third party, every mom I know is doing a whole lot of work. It doesn't matter if that work is housework or, say, being a radio presenter like Susan Keogh, every parent wishes they could spend a little more time with the kids. Yet so much time gets spent on doing what needs to be done to ensure those kids have the best life possible. The irony is never lost.
When Susan mentioned on her Twitter account that she wished she could spend more time with her young daughter, most were empathetic while others were cruel. It seems that while mothers are responsible for brining life into the world, they nary get any respect for it. Recently, meteorologist Katie Fehlinger was bullied just for being pregnant and continuing to appear on television. One man suggested that Susan just up and quit her job — a complaint never leveraged at dad, even though he works just as often. But this mama bear wasn't going to let the guy have the last laugh. See her heartfelt response below…
“Dear Brave Man,
I got your message. The one where you pointed out that if I missed my 4-year-old girl so much while I’m in work, then I should just give up my job. Or quit posting pictures of her, at the very least. How had I not thought of that? So helpful. I work for many reasons. I like my job. It’s really important to me. Not saving lives important, I get that, but it’s important to me. I enjoy it. It makes me happy and content. And as a result a better mom.”
“I work Monday to Friday. That’s 5 days where my child goes to preschool and creche. The icing on the cake — I miss bed time most nights. Do you know how many people point that out to me? Too many. My husband leaves the house at 5 every morning. He misses ‘wake up time’ every day. Guess how many people point that out to him? You got it! None.”
“Do I feel guilty? Every day. Sometimes 10 times a day. Do I want time to stand still at weekends? Of course I do. But I work to provide a better future for my daughter. So when she’s 16 and wants to go on the school ski trip I can say yes. Of course I fear she’ll turn around and say she would have preferred if I’d been at home with her all of the time but I’m hedging my bets. She’ll pick the skip trip, right? RIGHT???”
“At the minute my baby wants to be a flower lady when she’s big, not sure if this means selling flowers or just wearing them. I don’t care. I don’t have a career to show her she can have one, too. She can do what she pleases. And I guess that’s why I do it. I want to show her that she can make choices. I want her to be confident enough to make the right ones for her. I want her to choose happiness.”
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