It has been a long time since I have been thinking to retire from work, although I have just turned 40. After a lot of frenetic daily activities, you forget to live your life first of all, you can’t enjoy your children enough and the simple things we take for granted.
Being a working mom is a good thing but it is also exhausting. Almost in all societies women that work full time are treated the same as men. I mean no tolerance policies about working moms, regarding working hours, sick days or if they need a day just to recharge.
I don’t want to sound anachronistic but since women began to work full time and be involved in the workforce, contribute to the family incomes same as men, the society has changed and with that I mean the generations they raised. Let’s face it this way: you work 8 hours a day (the best scenario) come home, prepare the meals (snack, dinner and the lunch for tomorrow), do laundry, wash the dishes and help kids with their homework and have the respective meal during this time left. There is no way you can pass some quality time with your child/children, ask them what is going on with their life, if they are having any problems at school or with friends, because you have time to ask just one mere question “how was school today”. Children are smart, they know when the question is routine when they answer in the same way with just a plain “Good”. Well, we do not know what it is in that “Good”, the child might have social problems, maybe facing bullies, or he/she is not doing fine in a particular subject. Day by day we lose contact with them and face a big gap in our relationship.
Back in the days when women didn’t have to provide for their families, the family was much stronger, mothers had the time to really listen to their children, be closer to them and have time to educate them properly.
Now, I am not saying women should not work at all. Instead it is good for a woman to be economically independent and have a career. What I am pointing out is that there should be policies in place to make the women working hours more flexible. After all they are raising and educating the generations. Quality time with the children is essential and necessary.
A relaxed and happy mom means happy children.