You know things have just gone from good to bad when the words “well, you are obviously not a mother” come out of your mouth. It’s that point you get to that no matter how wrong your child is, you’ll be damned if they are reprimanded by that person who quite obviously does NOT have children. The mother bear switch turns on and watch out! I really pray daily that I become that mother who stays cool, calm and collected. I mean, I did say those dreadful words with the utmost calmness, but my intonation was extremely clear. Back off before the attack of mother bear takes place!
Yeah, now I have to face that woman next week. Um, that should be fun. She runs the facility I attend regularly with my daughter. Either I suck it up and pretend nothing happened, or protest against the facility and not attend anymore. All I know is tonight, some anti-child was running a children’s program who didn’t have that capacity of dealing with children at their worst. Of course my 5 year old child is going to throw a fit at 5:55pm (dinner time and really, in all honestly, nearing the end of her long five year old napless day) when its time to clean up and she hasn’t finished her 45 minute long bead project that needs to be ironed (you know the ones) but can’t be because it’s incomplete. Yet, there is no mercy. It is clean up time or die over here, and my daughter is having one of those really bad, really loud, unstoppable, temper tantrums. The ones where EVERYONE is staring to see what is going on. Yes, I know that rule are rules and clean up time is clean
up time. BUT does this woman really feel the need during this (blatantly obvious beyond a doubt) super stressful moment to share with me that she believes she will be revoking my daughter’s privileges in the craft room because this is her second (YES! only second) time that she has done this, and that she is displaying signs that she might not be mature enough to participate in this program.
This is where I beg the universe to please fill my world with a community of people who are understanding and patient with childhood behavior, maybe even helpful during a mother’s time of distress. I don’t think that would be too much to ask? Can we go back to the time when it “took a community to raise a child”? Where mom’s helped mom’s, and the non-moms respected the mom’s space when dealing with her children regardless of the amount of noise that was being produced. Help was offered when needed, respect was given, children were “tolerated” in public spaces? I mean, really, I was IN a space allocated for children and I was shunned.
In conclusion, what I would like to share is that I stood my ground with this woman, and made it known that I wanted the respect and time to deal with my daughter in the appropriate manner that was needed. Yes, I said those words to her that I am now thinking they could have been avoided, but maybe they needed to be said to her to make it known that I am the professional when it comes to dealing with MY daughter. If she didn’t plan on actively helping me, then she needed to step back. I have mixed feelings about that evening. I wish my daughter didn’t potentially get herself kicked out of the kid space, but I also am so happy that occasionally a crazy mother such as myself has enough guts to let people know that their way isn’t what works for everyone.
Rise of the mom!
Written by Angela Christu. Proud Momtreprenuer.
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