I've thought quite a lot about my trip last week for work. It feels like the natural progression in a theme I've long noticed: the disenchantment with travel for work. Other workin' mamas of young children have shared similar feelings with me. In the beginning one has a shiny new job and travel is exciting and new. You are a singleton - no partner, no family, footloose and fancy free!Traveling with your business gear, staying in hotels, adding days on to visit the location, eating with colleagues and/or clients. These are at first positive things.
Then as you get used to it, the annoyances of travel start to wear on you - delays, bad weather, bad meetings, not so interesting colleagues and/or clients. Missing things at home with friends/family because you are traveling for work. It starts to get a bit old. You meet someone, and this compounds the negatives rather than expounding the positives. You miss your someone. But perhaps you can still meet them somewhere exciting since you are traveling anyways. It's not great but you make the best of it.
Next thing you know, you've gone and reproduced. Now there is a tiny little one who in the beginning requires constant attention. You miss your new family dearly. You don't like foisting all the work on your partner, especially overnight travel. It's getting more expensive to meet up somewhere and then of course you have to bring the little one with you as well (travel with little ones, wee hoo!)
I wonder what will happen next? With more children? Older children? I see in the future that it probably gets better again, you find the balance.
Then as you get used to it, the annoyances of travel start to wear on you - delays, bad weather, bad meetings, not so interesting colleagues and/or clients. Missing things at home with friends/family because you are traveling for work. It starts to get a bit old. You meet someone, and this compounds the negatives rather than expounding the positives. You miss your someone. But perhaps you can still meet them somewhere exciting since you are traveling anyways. It's not great but you make the best of it.
Next thing you know, you've gone and reproduced. Now there is a tiny little one who in the beginning requires constant attention. You miss your new family dearly. You don't like foisting all the work on your partner, especially overnight travel. It's getting more expensive to meet up somewhere and then of course you have to bring the little one with you as well (travel with little ones, wee hoo!)
I wonder what will happen next? With more children? Older children? I see in the future that it probably gets better again, you find the balance.
3 comments:
I think it is much different for the mother - all those hormones and things. Your Mom always claimed that I traveled so much when you were young because I was bailing out on the childcare. But with 3 of you within 3.5 years of each other why would anyone want to be bailing out and miss all the fun of 6 consecutive years of double diapers, the terrible twos, middle school traumas. Don't have any idea of what she could be talking about.
Can definitely relate (to everything except the part that includes the baby-- although now when I'm away I miss my DOG terribly, so maybe its similar ;) ) Used to travel all the time and it was such a thrill. Now its harder to be away, inconvenient, throws me off of my routine. I wonder how much of this is due to partnering, etc and how much is just getting older/crankier/more stubborn. Maybe a combo.
@Dad - maybe sending your kids to middle school when they were six might have contributed to the trauma? :)
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