This summer, I’ve been visiting my parents in my home state of Ohio, which means I’ve been hanging out with a handful of little ones as well. My brother is 8, my nephew 7, and my nieces 12 and 5. I’ve spent a considerable amount of time over the past few years helping out with the kiddos, but this summer was really special because I got to have one-on-one time with each of them. They’ve grown up a lot since I last saw them, which definitely makes everything bittersweet. I love observing how they’re growing into themselves and developing little personalities that shine, sparkle, and make life way more fun. On the other hand, I hate that living so far away means I’ve missed out on a lot of the developmental highlights.
As a full-time remote worker, another thing that’s more tough with littles around is the constant distraction factor. My younger brother is of course a constant at home, but my parents have also hosted my nieces and/or nephew for a good chunk of the summer. On their break from school, each of my sister’s kids spend a full week with my mom, who’s their grandmother (or, “Mimi” as she’s called around these parts). So during those weeks, there are two little ones living where I’m living.
I love the kiddos and the chance to spend some time with each of them. But wow, it sure is hard to get work done when there’s screaming and running and craziness all around! Even as I write this, my 5-year-old niece is literally crawling under some barstools, dragging her body along the hardwood floor and covering herself in dog hair from my parents’ golden retriever. In fact, she just got up, ran over to me, and asked, “What’s for dinner?” It’s 3 PM, she’s already had four meals today, and I have no idea what’s for dinner.
I know that many Substackers are also parents, and I’m truly amazed by the resilience, consistency, and dedication of these writers on the platform. I’m aware that I don’t even know the half of how hard it is to raise a child, since ultimately, the kids aren’t my responsibility. I’m definitely not trying to step out of my lane here. What I am saying is that I better appreciate persistent mom and dad writers because of the little ones around me. While kids can make life extra fun, they certainly bring challenges along with them.
As I’ve been home this summer, I’ve sometimes gotten overwhelmed by the kiddos. But I’m truly grateful for the time I’ve spent with them, not only because I’ve been able to catch up with them, but also because they are inspiring. Transitioning to full-time freelancing has been a really scary journey, with intense highs and lows. Having the children around has reminded me not to take everything too seriously, to laugh a little more freely, and to be grateful that I’m on this adventure in the first place. Whether or not my dream works out, there’s no use in being scared and miserable as I pursue it. If I root my joy in my successes, I’m setting myself up for misery, for I’m bound to fail sometimes. It’s the nature of being human; I’m not perfect.
The goofiness and free-spiritedness of children, and their excitement to learn new things every day, helps me approach my writing with a spirit of curiosity, readiness, and joy. The childlike spirit also makes for an especially beautiful type of character, often the purest you can find in both fiction and nonfiction storytelling. This is the character that’s lovable, open-minded, silly, sweet, and uninhibited (almost to a fault).
While I do enjoy my adult and alone time, I’m super grateful for the kiddos in my life that I get to love and learn from. Each one of them teaches me something new everyday! When I help out, I often think that I’m taking care of them. But then they say something that reminds me that, in reality, they’re caring for me. ❤️