As a new school year begins, I always start reminiscing about my college days. Has it really been two years since I graduated? REALLY?
I was talking to my sister yesterday about how comforting college was. Every 15 weeks I had a plan. I would take these classes, on these days, study here, take a test there, eat here, party there, go home for break and then do it all over again.
I felt secure in knowing exactly which classes I still needed to take, which books were necessary for which classes, and which teachers would raise your grade if you went to see them during office hours.
Motherhood is so different. There’s no graded papers. Your kid doesn’t slap a gold sticker on you at the end of the day to say, “You did a damn good job today, Mom. Keep up the good work.”
There’s no set path that you follow, no rules of the job that help you get by. You’re winging it the whole time, hoping that no one (especially the kid) notices that you’re a novice.
When my daughter was a baby, she never smiled at me and she would have these screams that seemed to translate into, “God, I hate you – can’t you do anything right?!?!” I would have given my right arm for a teacher to swoop in, with a clipboard in hand, peer over my shoulder and say, “Yup. That is exactly the right response. A+ for effort, Young Mommy.”
We all know that doesn’t happen. But the good thing is, motherhood isn’t a pass/fail course. Some days you’ll get an A. Some days it might be pushing it to get a C -. Other days you’ll get an F and won’t feel like doing a damn thing about it.
We have to remember that kids don’t grade us as hard as we grade ourselves. So we mess up – they forgive quickly. So we forget – they love us anyway.
True motherhood is nothing like college, but what I wouldn’t give to have Spring Break just one more time…
Woooooo, AMEN to that! I would settle for just a short Thanksgiving break right about now!!! Today was definitely a C- day for me
@Courtney – Ehh, I think yesterday was about a B-, C+ if I’m honest. LOL. That was simply the best I could do.
Oh how I miss college….:(
@AAM – Don’t we all?
LOL I’m starting my senior year today and this is SO true. I still don’t see how people can actually miss college though…I guess I’ll understand that more next summer when I’m done forever!
@Leah – See, you’ve been a mom for most of your college career, correct? I only had to go through senior year, so it wasn’t as hard, which is probably why I remember college so fondly. Days of when I could sleep in if I wanted. But you, my friend, are awesome! Good luck on your senior year!
as a single mom starting college at 33, i have to say wow. i was worried about going to school, but thanks to this post i guess im already doing the hardest part.
I remember not being able to wait until graduation so I could be done with college–even though I enjoyed my time there. I didn’t understand how people said they missed it–or even high school, but after my 1st year I missed it so much. In fact I missed it so much that I just decided to complicate my life as a single parent even more and applied to grad school at the same campus! Hopefully I will be starting next week, but I’m sure once the 1st big assignment comes, I will be back to my old thinking of not being able to wait until it’s over
Kudos to every mom who holds it down and still manages to do the school thing! {What’s the secret???}