Three Kid Circus for On The Verge

Jenny writes:
“I know I can’t be everywhere at once, and I can’t be everything to everybody, and that lots of parents work and lots of parents don’t volunteer and lots of parents are late to the party. I just never thought I’d be that parent. If you would have asked me five years ago, I would have told you all about how involved I was going to be, how I would enrich and encourage, how I would Be There.

And today, I could have Been There. And I was. But I was late, well past the point when I would have earned good mom credit. It pains me just thinking about it.”

I’ve read this post a few times now and each time I well up. I think the part where Jenny’s daughter puts her arms around her mother to comfort her gets me the most. See? Just typing that made my tear ducts twitch.

I have had to make some tough family decisions recently. What I’ve realized is that there are some things just too precious to miss. Things I will never see again. My permanent backstop is that I’m going to be there for my kid’s moments, as many as I can, big or small, first and foremost…because they will never be kids again.

But, alas, as super as we all are, we are only human. Sometimes, life happens. Jenny’s post, perfectly put, is exactly about that tug of guilt that wages war on your heart.