The Hardest Job In The World

"A baby is born with the need to be loved- and never outgrows it."

                                                                                    -Frank A. Clark

As I write this post, I'm on "break" from my parenting responsibilities. I have been on this journey for a month, or a lifetime, I'm not sure. My heart has swelled, yet tears rush down my face everyday. I applaud teachers for their patience, a doctor's ability to heal, police/fireman for protecting us, and veterans enduring sacrifice in the name of freedom. These professions are noble; however, none compare to the task of being a parent.

My little guy only eats, sleeps, and poops.  We have not even begun to face life's real challenges, yet I already feel helpless. As he screams, despite being fed and clean, nothing seems to alleviate these visceral noises.  I want to fix it, and I can't.  What will it be like when he doesn't get invited to a birthday party? Gets cut from the soccer team? Struggles with something? Unlike the moments in his first month of life, these are actual events to be remembered. As I try to master the parenting of a newborn, I'm already thinking of the challenges ahead, and wondering how many I will never see coming. It's daunting.  While professionally I can create sticker charts, wait out challenging behavior, empathize, and listen to lamenting parents, when it comes to my own child, I'm mush.  I get it, well, at the most basic level.

Being a parent does not come with sick days or PTO.  Everyday you wake up, and your child/children need you. At present, my little guy really has predominately physical needs. While this is exhausting, it pales in comparison to the emotional demands that will arise in the years to come. Though it would be nice to hope these responsibilities would cease after 18 years, I was certainly calling my parents beyond my teens with some conundrum that caused angst, sadness, confusion, and frustration.  Now, I call crying because I am a parent. Our phone calls reflect two generations of moms who can't fix their child's problem.  It sucks, I get it. This job is all day, everyday, forever. There is no monetary reward, but love with all your heart, and the outcome is priceless.