These are the Days
Thoughts on the preschool years, or more accurately the days that comprise those years
I received notification in my news this morning that the U.S. Surgeon General had issued a health advisory on the impact of parenting. The “About” section of the Advisory states that it “calls attention to the importance of parental stress, mental health and well-being, stressors unique to parenting, and the bidirectional relationship between parental mental health and child outcomes.”
Funny enough, I had just written the below poem about these very stresses and the complementary delight that makes it worth sacrificing our health to take them on.
These are the days
The days they said to cherish
The days not to take for granted
The days not to wish away
The days we will sorely miss
These are the days with sticky countertops
Smudged fingerprints on windows
Toys strewn about
These are the days with endless cuddles in one moment
And refusals to be near us the next
The need for assistance sometimes
And frustration over the mere suggestion of it at others
These are the days with rushed exchanges with neighbors
As we hurry from one activity to the next
Operating on schedules seemingly in unison yet so lonely in our silos
Wondering if we are doing all of it, any of it, “right”?
These are the days where we scurry out the door in the morning
Our hearts aching as we pull away from tears and requests for “one more” kiss
Where we rush back at the end of the day to elated hugs
Quickly dissolving into whines of exhaustion
While we stir pots, switch laundry over, and prep backpacks
To do it all again tomorrow
What a blessing it is that we get to do it all again tomorrow
