The Children are Having Their Childhood NOW

Every minute captive

There is no pause button. No time suspension mechanism that will allow you to walk away from this moment and come back to it unchanged. The reality is —babies always wean, toddlers grow independent, children learn to make their own lunches and tuck themselves in, and teenagers eventually outgrow your oversight. As startling as that is, knowing that we only have a finite amount of time can jolt us into the present with startling clarity.

The children are having their childhood now.

“The children are having their childhood now” Is a phrase that my husband and I use to remind each other that THIS is the real urgent work. It’s so easy to do whatever task is most pressing, to satisfy whomever might be calling the loudest- and sometimes that might just be the 3 year old in the bathroom who needs toilet paper.. again. But often it isn’t. Often it’s the things that distract us FROM the real work that take our energy and engagement. Safe. Known. Loved. These are the urgent needs of today. And tomorrow. And the day following. The children are having their childhood now. They won’t wait for a “better” time.