Sometimes as a single parent, I go through my moments of weakness; where life feels a bit discombobulated and it’s difficult to focus on one task or thought at a time. Where it feels like everybody needs me at the same time or I can barely get myself together. All parents have experienced this. However, it can feel and be a bit more fatiguing when you’re a single parent.
But what happens when you’re having a weak moment and your child or children need you during one of their weak moments?
Where do you pull your strength from?
How do you find the extra strength to be supermom or superdad when you need someone super for yourself? Where do you find the extra focus when the vision is barely clear for you?
I know there are single parents, on occasion, who wish they had someone to lean on during their bouts of weakness. Me included. Because it does get tough. It gets tough being everyone’s sounding board. It gets tiring trying to alleviate issues or problems within the household without having a tag team partner.
It gets overwhelming.
You want to be able to figure out your own thoughts but you know your child or children need your guidance. They need you to be their hero. They need your shoulder to cry on. They need your focus to be on them. They need a counselor.
And during that time where you’re comforting your child and reassuring them that life gets better and tough times NEVER last, somehow in the midst of all of that, your strength, the extra strength you need, breaks through. In the midst of the advice and counsel that you’re bestowing on your child, you begin to realize that you’re helping yourself as well. Because you know that these moments of weakness and vulnerability never overstay their welcome. You start to reflect back on the experiences in your life and you become reminded of how far you’ve come.
You’ve been through storms before and have a stash of rainbows to remind you of the strength you gained once the clouds parted. So even in the midst of yours and your child’s weak moment, you give them strength through your counsel and in turn that extra strength you needed comes full fledged.
Single parents: the strength is already coursing through our veins.
Life Lessons from a Novice 