If I am doing the right thing, my son will look back on his childhood and remember that I was a room parent and a soccer coach, and not that our curtains needed to be replaced for 5 years and we only ate out once a week. Maybe by the time he has a family of his own, our society will appreciate and support time spent raising children and caring for elderly parents as much as we appreciate and support time spent earning and spending money.
I am actually an attorney, and I should probably be working full time instead of sitting around writing blog entries. Every clue I get from the world around me points to the notion that I should be Earning to my Full Potential. If I earned a real salary, we could replace the living room curtains, buy groceries without keeping a running tab in the supermarket, and plan family vacations involving plane fares and hotels. Christmas could be lavish, Rob could pick out a new car instead of buying my parents’ used Hondas, and we would never sweat another emergency bill from the plumber, the vet or the mechanic.
As it is, I do legal consulting work for a firm about an hour away from here. I do not make as much money as I could, and I do not make enough money to make a significant financial contribution to the household. When I took my present “job” it was supposed to involve many more hours, much more work, and the ability to earn what I needed to earn while working at home. It would have been perfect, but apparently there just wasn’t as much work as the boss thought there was going to be; I work on a sort of freelance “feast or famine” basis.
Instead of vigorously looking for something outside the house that involves Serious Money, I have clung to the mantra that I “sort of have a job,” hoping that some day, beams of light will break through the clouds, and I will find myself, as promised, working 20 hours a week from home and bringing in enough cash to ease pressure on Rob and improve our quality of life. In the meantime, I have tried home-party sales work, selling on e-Bay, and making and selling crafts, to earn some money while being “allowed” to stay home and available to my child, my husband and my parents.
The truth is that I am not “really” working because we are willing to trade a pretty significant financial pinch so that I can be at home. I am certainly not idle; in an an average week I keep our house clean, our clothes washed and folded, our bills paid, our meals planned and cooked, Sam chauffered, our papers filed, and our medical appointments made and kept. I also spend as much time as possible with my parents, who are both in their 70s and live locally. I try to take a meal to them once or twice a week as well as being available to drive to and from medical appointments or spend serious chunks of time at the hospital when one of them is a patient. I am a PTA member and room parent, I have coached rec league soccer, and I am a member of several community organizations. Silly stuff? Maybe, but I see it as the grassroots work that makes the world go around; when done well and with intention, it is a blessing on everyone involved. I know that I will never reflect on my life and regret that I didn’t spend time with my son when he was young, or with my parents when they were elderly.
I know that there are millions of women who have no choice. They have no husbands, husbands who are out of work, husbands who don’t earn enough to support a family, and ex-husbands who pay inadequate support. I am aware that many of them would like the luxury of staying home to care for their children, and that their work is what puts food on the table and provides health care for their families. I am really just a pathetic, whining, excuse-making sponge. At least that’s how I see it in my darkest hours. There are women running to get their kids to school, get themselves to work, juggling day care, doctor visits, play practices, soccer practices, and homework sessions with three kids while I am a “stay at home mom” to one measly kid.
I also know that there are women who have to work not for financial reasons, but for reasons of sanity – they are passionate about their work, and/or they know that they would lose their minds if forced to stay home and arbitrate fights over Weebles and the last Cheerio. More power to them for knowing themselves well enough to make a decision about working that benefits them and their children. I also know that there are women who work not from strict financial necessity, but so that their families can have certain things like vacations, nice cars, or new carpet. Again, this (clearly) wouldn’t be my choice, but it is a valid life style that works for many families.
[Note: if this were actually published anywhere, I would anticipate a hailstorm of letters, and I could write them myself using the words “whining,” “out of touch,” “sexist” and “selfish.” I am lucky to have a husband who lets me stay home with our shredded curtains. I am discriminating against men by assuming that they should always have to work while women should get a choice. Don’t imagine for a moment that I don’t know those things.]
I don’t think women should have to work outside the home unless they (and their partners) have decided that it is the best thing for their family. I wish that our society had the ability to support single moms so that, if they chose to be at home during their childrens’ formative years, they could. I wish that we did not have laws that require the poorest women to go to work or to school, leaving their children in the substandard daycare they can afford with “vouchers”, in order to qualify for benefits that allow them to eat and receive medical care. I have never understood why we demonize “welfare mothers” and separate them from their children. Their children need their mothers’ time and attention far more than my son (who has every possible advantage) needs mine, but I am fortunate enough to have a choice.
I also wish that it was really acceptable for women to decide to stay home if they are financially able to do so. There are countless websites and articles in womens’ magazines on the topic of “work-at-home” opportunities, and about entrepreneurial moms who started businesses in their basements. That says to me that there are millions of women who really want to stay home and just be with their children and run their houses, and that they are desperately trying to find a way to do that. If having discretionary cash flow is less valuable to a family than having mom at home, why is that an unacceptable choice?
I’ll readily admit that there are countless women who manage to work and spend time with their kids and help their parents and support the community. My own mother worked and did all of those things. Since I have only this one life, though, it is my personal choice that to the greatest extent possible I am going to use my energy to “work” for the people I love. For as long as I possibly can, I choose to be available to have lunch with my mom when she’s sad, or to bake cupcakes for the 5th grade Halloween party, while throwing away J.Jill catalogues so I won’t be tempted to spend money. I would rather plan and cook from-scratch meals and eat in my kitchen than be at work all day and have the money to go out three nights a week. I would rather wear clothes from Target and pay to have my coats re-lined than miss school activities because I have to attend a client meeting.
I would like for the choices of all women concerning work to be respected and supported as long as those choices are in the best interests of their families.
Tightly Wrapped 