I don’t know about you, but I grew up in a house where you did exactly what the generation before you did without thinking. You graduated from high school, got married and kept an immaculate house…you had children, donned an apron as you tossed a roast in the oven on Sunday before you went to church…and you sewed pretty dresses for your daughters. Somehow though for me something felt amiss. There was a whole chunk of me that was missing…..my youth.
I was married at 19 and a Mom at 20 and never realized that there was a life beyond what I had experienced as a child growing up, so I just went with it. I went from my parents house to my husband’s house without the oppurtunity to experience life and never really knowing the difference.
As the years went by there was the inevitable divorce and many life challenges that naturally went along with that part of my life story. A lot of sadness and yet so much joy as my amazing children who in each of their unique ways showed me so many different ways to embrace my inner child by observing how they have embraced their new lives as they left the nest.
That quirky kid who really never had a chance to be a kid….still embraces the always present childhood in every generation. So, in saying this, I am going to embrace and smile on this video each and every day on facebook this year….and you can too if you want too 🙂
Each one of us has either learned and or taught a child to ride a bike…and what a magical moment it is/was when we did it…life lesson….you CAN do it! Me…I choose to embrace life and new experiences. 🙂
The Woolen Rabbit 
So interesting you would post this today. I was just telling my own daughter that my wish for her would be for her to live on her own before moving in with her boyfriend. Yes, we need new experiences – to not be afraid to try new things. It keeps us young.
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You’re never too old to act like a kid! Good for you for helping your children to break the mold while you did it yourself, too.
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Great attitude, Kim! New things and change are scary, to be sure, but I personally think both are good things to experience!!
(reminds me of the time 2 high school friends of my husband’s who came to visit us in Vermont and were horrified we only had real maple syrup – they literally got up from the table at breakfast and went out and got Log Cabin – because that’s what they had only ever eaten and that’s all they were ever gonna eat.)
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I remember the day I “got it” and took off on my bike at full tilt. Unbelievably it was 54 years ago!?! I remind myself constantly that it’s good to learn new things, especially as we age. How else do we keep the mind supple and working? Nice post today and such a good reminder.
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So many of us can relate to the too young marriage (mine was also 19). Mine ended after 5 years and no children, but it certainly had a lasting impact. For some reason, I’ve been thinking about it a lot recently and what it meant and didn’t mean, so your post really struck me.
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There is an old, old saying that all of us can relate to. It is “the maid mourns the maiden”! So many of us came out of high school, went right to work, left home and married young. One day you realize you are no longer 20-something, or 30-something, or 40-something, and you wonder where did it go? You dig your heels in and want time to slow down a bit but it really seems to do just the opposite and speed up!!
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I probably had the exact opposite experience – pushed hard to pursue ever more education, NOT do the SAHM thing, never depend on a man for anything (financial security, social status, etc), eyes on a prize bigger than myself or a family. It’s a different kind of pressure, maybe, because there were times when I felt like I was stepping out alone, a total freak, overly educated, unmarried/childless at age 30, etc. It is scary to leave what you knew growing up, but that’s what you have to do, sometimes.
Thanks for the video link. I normally dislike these rah-rah-you-can-do-it songs, but it felt like a good reminder to get off my butt and keep pursuing goals that are worth attaining.
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I loved this entry. I think it is so important to hold on tightly to your inner younger self, the girl with the pig tails who rode her bike around town with her friends, looking for adventures with scraped knees and a belly full of candy and soda pop. Who fell asleep each night exhauted from the adventures you found, holding your teddy and drifting off into a sound and peaceful sleep. This entry reminds all of us to look around, maybe not all the time but absolutely sometimes, and ask yourself, what would eight year old me do today? And go give it a try. Again you are teaching us lesson, so many lesson! You are a wonderful mother and I am wonderfully grateful. HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM!!
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I loved this entry. I think it is so important to hold on tightly to your inner younger self, the girl with the pig tails who rode her bike around town with her friends, looking for adventures with scraped knees and a belly full of candy and soda pop. Who fell asleep each night exhauted from the adventures you found, holding your teddy and drifting off into a sound and peaceful sleep. This entry reminds all of us to look around, maybe not all the time but absolutely sometimes, and ask yourself, what would eight year old me do today? And go give it a try. Again you are teaching us a lesson, so many lessons! You are a wonderful mother and I am wonderfully grateful. HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM!!
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