On Parenting: The Gratitude and Grief of Raising Children
Occasionally, I mourn the loss of my children's childhood. I know that it seems premature to grieve for something that is not already gone, but childhood is so fleeting. And, they change so much so fast. 2011 and 2015 There are evenings when I am performing our nighttime rituals, the time in which I have one-on-one with each of my two children, that I am brought to tears. I am not sad... exactly. Sadness rarely makes me cry. I am overwhelmed... by the gratitude of getting to do this and by grief that soon there will be a time when I don't get to do this anymore. When I am overwhelmed by these feelings, I think, is it possible that other parents feel this way? I mean, it seems... so, personal. Is it actually... universal? How did I get to be so lucky as to have these two children? Not any two children, but these in particular that seem so right for me to love, to nurture, to mother, to help along their journey. Do they know how perfect they are for me? Do they think