I am constantly reading (and agree) about the importance of “the family table”. Basically, all sorts of good things happen when families eat dinner (or other meals) together more often. We make an effort to have dinner together most nights. Last week was a little hectic with my husband’s schedule so we only ate dinner all together on Friday and Saturday nights.
One of the things that I love about eating together is that we have a wide variety of conversations. On Saturday night, (part of) the conversation went like this:
Michael: What do you want me to be when I grow up?
Me: Whatever you want to be. (I realized that he was asking me what I wanted him to do job-wise – not be.)
Michael: (Obviously not content with my answer) What do you want me to be when I grow up, Daddy?
Reggie: Really. We want you to be whatever you want to be.
Michael: I could be a fireman.
Me: Yes you can…or something else. You don’t have to figure it out right now.
Michael: What do you want to be when you grow up, Mommy?
Michael: (After I gave him several answers that obviously didn’t meet his approval) You could be a fire fighter.
Me: No thanks. (My husband is laughing, because he knows that I would be the worst firefighter ever – running away from the fires!)
Sean: You could be a Princess…like Princess Tiana. You just need a green dress. (Awww.)
That conversation with my husband and kids kind of hit on a theme that has been swirling in my head the last couple of weeks. It started with another table conversation a couple of weeks ago. We had a triple date with some friends. During the dinner conversation, I was challenged to use my parenting and speaking skills to do a series of free workshops in lower-income communities. It was a good challenge. I definitely like to contribute in other ways. Later though, I was “whelmed” with the idea of adding another thing to my (more than full) schedule.
Next, I went to an R Baby Foundation event (which I will write more about later) which explored passions, priorities and community. I left the luncheon event really questioning my passions and community outreach. I do a lot of charitable work, but it is kind of scattered. There is nothing especially wrong with that. However, it can be overwhelming at times. There are a gazillion and one great charities and it is impossible for me to support (time, money, etc.) each of them. I think that I want to figure out what I’m especially passionate about and put my focus there.
Lastly, I had one more conversation (around yet another table!) that sparked something in me. A girlfriend of mines mentioned that she was going to be teaching a class at a local college. It was just one class, but that fit perfectly in her schedule. I have been wondering what I would like to do next. When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a teacher, because I have always loved learning and teaching others what I have learned. Over the years, the idea of teaching in a school flew out of the window. (I am not a morning person and I hate bureaucracy.) Now, I’m considering getting my Master’s degree so that I can lecture at the college level. Now, I just have to figure out my focus (business, history, sociology, family counseling, ?). What is great / the thing that I love the most about leaving in this age is that I don’t have to figure everything out in a day. Since this current stage of my life (mom of young kids) has unwrapped in such wonderful, unexpected ways, I’m excited to see what the next few years have in store!
On a total side note, a high school friend posted a picture of me from when I was in high school. I’m going to 37 in few months, so this picture was taken almost 20 years ago. Where did the time go?!
(Stealing from Michael) What do you want to be when you grow up?
