It was just a typical day. I had run my errands with the baby, and had just picked up my 4 year old from PreK.
“Mom. I know what I want to be when I grow up.”
“Oh really? What’s that?”
“I want to be a Principal.”
“That’s a great idea.”
“Do I have to go to school to do that?”
“Yes. You would need to be a teacher and then become a principal.”
“Oh I don’t want to do that. Mom did you HAVE to go to school?”
“No. I wanted to go to school.”
“No. I mean to be a Mommy? Did you have to go to school to JUST BE A MOMMY?”
I don’t think she yelled “JUST BE A MOMMY” but it felt like a knife in the heart.
When I was pregnant with my middle child I was in the middle of receiving my Bachelors. I took a year off and then started my master’s program. Me being in school is really all she knew.
Little did my 4 year old know that she struck me right where it hurt. I’ve been focusing on my education so deeply it had become who I was. Here I am 6 months post graduation and still JUST A MOM.
When I focus on everything else I need to take care of, I recognize that I am more than just a mom. Yet when my daughter pointed it out, it hurt. I had all of these ambitions while in school. I’m going to be a corporate woman. I’m going to be a boss woman.
The thing is, we are boss women. As Sandwichers we not only manage our lives, we manage our parent’s lives as well. We are the boss of so much. Sometimes we need to recognize that being “JUST A MOMMY” (as my 4 yr old put it) is a bigger job than what give ourselves credit for.
Sandwichers take on the role of so much for so many.
Sandwiched Between You and You 