The Show Must Go On
It is funny how “new parent syndrome” never seems to go away. Maybe we thought the new feeling would fade when our son turned one, or maybe when we were shoved away after going in for a hug. Whatever the milestone has been, it has only raised the shields of protecting our little one.
Recently we have discovered that it isn’t just one of us in this unique jam but in fact both of us. During an event we were invited to, it dawned on us that we had not made plans for our son, which meant he was coming with. It also meant a new nursery (Uh oh). “Do you have snack time?” “Will he be with kids his own age?” “Are the toys sanitized?” “Will you make sure he gets the milk in his diaper bag?”
These are just some of the questions that showered that poor worker. Or maybe I should say poor parents because it seems that we have been suffering from this syndrome madness we keep hearing about and of which we are in need of a cure. It wasn’t enough to have our questions answered; we still needed to SEE what was happening once we placed our son down to run around with the other toddlers. Keeping in mind that we had to “hide” so he wouldn’t see us, we peeked through the glass to catch glimpses of what was going on.
We were confident after thirty minutes of sneaking peeks that maybe he might survive without us. During the event it was hard not to notice each other fidgeting around and looking back in the direction of the nursery (as if that helped) to see if all was well. After all, our son could be eating something found on the floor or choking and no one has noticed! In a mad dash we were off to rescue him.
It never occurred to either of us just how many times we had relayed back and forth to and from the nursery, what mattered was just how fast we could get there. How is a new parent to survive in a world where people are so hard to be trusted, especially with our precious gift? Ergo mom and dad to the rescue!
We have come to find that when the new syndrome takes over, we are no longer regular parents but we are like super heroes. Yes, heroes with heightened senses and the ability to act quickly. Upon arriving for the hundredth time we decided that it was best to check him out altogether. Besides, the tread on our shoes had been worn down by this point and we were totally disengaged from the event. Obviously this was the best thing to do, right? Well, the most interesting thing about our family of three has been our kiddo. It hasn’t mattered how many times we have dove in to save him (literally) from any certain danger, or have had a panic attack over the germs on an unfamiliar toy; at the end of the day the kid has no idea. The rule of being completely unaware and content must be pretty nice because we have noticed that he has been living by it since day one. I guess that rule applied when we went to retrieve him from the nursery because he had been just fine…every time. Are we the only crazed parents like this? In any case, we have been stuck in this role so we may as well embrace it and wear it as a badge of honor. We say…let the saga continue.
Image from http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/feb/28/high-costs-of-childcare
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The Show Must Go On Indeed! I just see this couple and that little 2 year old! This writer has a way of putting you in the room with her as she describes a scene from their lives and I LOVE IT!!!!
Totally agree!!!!! Very well written!!!!!!!!!!!!