Staying Sane: Learn something new

As working mothers I think we can all say that we’ve been guilty of diving too deeply into the roles of worker and / or mother and have lost ourselves at some point. Sometimes it’s hard to recognize and when a pattern is established, it’s hard to pull yourself out. It’s the same thing, day after day after day. But it doesn’t have to be. Just look at our children. Their days can be routine as well – in fact as we know, they typically thrive on routine. But what is it that fills their days (besides eating and pooping). Play. Learning. Exploring. Developing an understanding of the world around them. Over time it’s easy to forget the excitement in learning something new. Some people reject the concept altogether. But I love looking at wonder in a child’s eyes as you teach them something – it can be something simple. How does the clothes washing machine work? Where does food come from? What makes cars? Oh my goodness I can crawl… walk… run… jump… ride a bike… read…..

There has been a lot of learning in our household recently –

Taking trips to museums and zoos and learning about fish, dinosaur bones, moon rocks, alligators, painting, coloring, using scissors, seeing frogs jump, brushing goats, singing happy birthday, balancing on balance beams….

I think I have stayed in my profession as long as I have because it is something new — with every project and every year. Traveling to far away places to see different ways of living and experiencing new worlds has always been a thrill for me. I have always loved and admired people in much older generations that still embrace learning – embrace the internet, find a purpose for each new day, and continue to seek out new experiences. As people we need this. What comes so naturally for children becomes more difficult and maybe we have to try harder to push ourselves into the new and different – but how else do you grow? Or maybe some people don’t need this? It is OK to stay the same? Be content with where you are and what you know? Seek comfort in the safety for not striving for something more?

Where do fall along this continuum?

I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently since I will have some new found time freeing up in my life in the near future due to divorce. The time away from my children saddens me, but I am slowly starting to anticipate this time as a time for me. And part of that time I will invest in learning something new. I thought about music classes, cooking classes, …. but have settled on art. I think I’m going to take a water color painting class — we’ll see how these thoughts progress over time.

What about you?
What do you do to live more like your children and learn, explore, and discover the world around you? Does this make you happier and more balanced?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts –
Thanks for listening –
Mama K