Being a Mom.
I thought being invisible was a part of the job description.
Always there to: find/advise/fix/drive/answer/rescue.
no wonder I thought I was my son's HP.
But seriously though, I believe that many things I did out of love were good.
Feeding my family things they love gives me great pleasure even if its not my favorite foods. Giving up my time to watch them do what they do gives me great pleasure even if I had to give up some of my time. even as I did it for them it gave me pleasure also.
Being a parent requires such balance of nurturing and giving of ourselves to those we love; and taking care of ourselves, not losing who we are,and teaching our children that we matter too.
Looking back, I find that when I felt my children were ungrateful and demanding, ( it sadly happened frequently!) I was probably losing myself in their lives and didn't know how to handle that right. I probably didn't have the knowledge of what was really bothering me.
But I don't regret it. I loved being a mom. and still do. just wished I had the skills when they were young that I have now!
Often in a parents post on SR, when their child is deep in their addiction, you can read a parents despair in their loss of a relationship. We can feel that pain as a parent thinks so much is lost. All the past love, nurturing, work that we did to help them grow seems in vain.
But this post reminds me its not lost.
All of that invisible Love: sewing, cooking, handholding, game cheering, homework helping etc. is still there and walking with them. It is there right next to their HP.
every addict who shares on our side tells us that the Love of their parents, even as it seems " invisible" is there inside, talking to them ,when they choose to listen.
i like how you put this PacNor!:ghug
Cathy