I always hate it when he travels. The kids and I are all off balance. I always feel like I am trying to do my job wearing just one roller skate. Lots of tripping and lots of wobbling. I am never in the mood to make dinner, homework assignments always seem longer, my patience seems short lived, disciplining is exhausting and to top it off, my nightmares that have plagued me for years seem to be in full swing when I am home alone.
I have been thinking a lot about what it would be to be a single mom. I am lucky because at least I know that things will get back to normal. Romney gets to come home...this is not permanent. I think of my sister and dear friend whose husbands spent months and months deployed in the Middle East, I think of my friend who is raising 3 boys after her husband Rich passed away nearly 3 years ago and I think of several women in our ward who are raising young children by themselves.
We have some friends in Boston who are really hurting this week. The husband Mat, lost his six year battle with cancer. He died on Valentine's Day...of all days. Kimberly is now a single mom with two young boys. She is now obligated to wear just one skate and I am sure that her future seems blurry and uncertain.
I have been thinking about her all week. My heart aches as I wonder how she is going to face homework, discipline, solitary TV watching, learning how to laugh again and mostly the task of raising her boys wearing just one skate, but she is a strong woman and I know that she is already being blessed with a strength that is not her own.
So in honor of her, I have been determined to make my "One Skate" week better. I have made dinner almost every night, homework has been done...without tears, Annie practices have been attended, Act 1 is memorized, Thomas made Basketball practices, and somehow my nightmares escaped me.
The week is almost over. Of course we hobbled, but we did it.
Romney gets to come home tonight.
So sorry about your friend's husband Alecia. I often think the same thing about single moms. Brent has been traveling at least every other week for the last 3 months. He was gone this week and has two more trips planned in the next three weeks. I've been pretty good at trying to keep our schedule the same when he's gone, but it's hard. I have a lot of respect for single mom's and feel blessed that at least my husband always returns home to us. Miss you guys.
ReplyDeleteSo sad about your friends. I couldn't imagine how difficult that would be. When John was gone a lot, I kind of got used to him being gone. Now when he leaves, we kind of just have fun. We watch movies at dinner, spend the weekends wandering around places... we just try to make the best of it! :)
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