"And summer's lease hath all too short a date. "
William Shakespeare
Where did the time go? I have a 14 year old in the midst of enjoying his summer break, and it makes me pine for that two month vacation of youth. Why couldn't someone have sat me down and said, "look, these summers don't last forever. Savor every single care free minute of them. Stay up until two in the morning every night. Get up and ten. Enjoy it every bit, because once they are gone, they don't come back. You will never again experience these days unencumbered by pressure. Sure, you'll take vacations, and if your lucky, you won't start worrying about the real life traumas that await your return at least until the second day of your so called vacation. But this, you will never experience again."
But no one told me that. Instead my asshole father wondered why the hell I was sleeping all day, and why I didn't do anything he considered productive. Only with reflection do I realize that is was just jealousy that caused him to feel that way. That, and the fact that he really is an asshole.
I got home today and @ was at his computer IM'ing his friends, (God if we had IM when I was a kid I would have asked EVERY girl in school out, you never have to meet rejection face to face!) watching a movie on the TV, eating a WhatABurger Hot Apple Pie, and washing it down with a vanilla shake. Summer was never so wrapped up in a nutshell. THAT, my friends, is what it's all about. I have told him how rare this time in his life is. He doesn't understand it now. But looking back, he will. My goal is to provide him with the environment to do those "summer things" and not feel pressured to "be productive with your time". He has chores, mows the yard and has responsibilities that he takes care of. But dammit, responsibilities can wait. They'll be here soon enough.
William Shakespeare
Where did the time go? I have a 14 year old in the midst of enjoying his summer break, and it makes me pine for that two month vacation of youth. Why couldn't someone have sat me down and said, "look, these summers don't last forever. Savor every single care free minute of them. Stay up until two in the morning every night. Get up and ten. Enjoy it every bit, because once they are gone, they don't come back. You will never again experience these days unencumbered by pressure. Sure, you'll take vacations, and if your lucky, you won't start worrying about the real life traumas that await your return at least until the second day of your so called vacation. But this, you will never experience again."
But no one told me that. Instead my asshole father wondered why the hell I was sleeping all day, and why I didn't do anything he considered productive. Only with reflection do I realize that is was just jealousy that caused him to feel that way. That, and the fact that he really is an asshole.
I got home today and @ was at his computer IM'ing his friends, (God if we had IM when I was a kid I would have asked EVERY girl in school out, you never have to meet rejection face to face!) watching a movie on the TV, eating a WhatABurger Hot Apple Pie, and washing it down with a vanilla shake. Summer was never so wrapped up in a nutshell. THAT, my friends, is what it's all about. I have told him how rare this time in his life is. He doesn't understand it now. But looking back, he will. My goal is to provide him with the environment to do those "summer things" and not feel pressured to "be productive with your time". He has chores, mows the yard and has responsibilities that he takes care of. But dammit, responsibilities can wait. They'll be here soon enough.
Comments
I hope your kid appreciates you! :)
Thanks for this post. Sounds like we have the same 14 year old. Mine hangs out on AIM all the time too, makes life much easier for dating. Last night my 14 said he was spendig the night with a friend. When I called to check, they were out, and stayed out til 2. Im in a dilema as a parent. Do I punish him for being out without permission, or do I empathise and remember what I was doing at 14. Ahhhh parenting....