I’ve been on the bus with you for 20 minutes now.
I know having a small child is not easy, especially on a bus ride longer than 5 minutes. I know after a long day of work, you just want two minutes to breathe. So, giving them something to eat and putting your earphones in to watch a video may seem like ” a break”.
While you have your earphones in and your little one is devouring that chocolate bar, they are watching you.
This is the time you will miss. The time when you reflect on this moment, you’ll think of it as “how I survived the bus ride home”. As time rolls on, and your little person gets older, it will come back as “why didn’t I pay more attention to them when they were little”.
When you are on your phone, they scream because they want your attention. They crave your conversation. They crave your time. They have questions, and to them, you hold all the answers. They are learning by watching everything around them and asking you “why?” all the time.
Please mom, I know it’s hard. I especially know if you are a single mom, and your time to decompress is limited. There were days I struggled to keep myself composed on the bus ride home.
One thing I know now that my daughter is 18: time flies.
The time will come when you will wish for these days when all they wanted was your undivided attention. They will reach an age where they won’t want to spend that much time with you, when they assert their independence, and are becoming their own person. These years are important ones.
Please mom, take out the earphones.
I know the bus ride is long, but you’ll blink, and time will have flown.
Screaming Into the Void 
Amen. They are watching every little thing, absorbing, learning how to be human. It is hard to be human. Don’t you want them to learn what you have to teach – while they still care?
The days are long, but the years are short.
This is a lovely post, Amy.
Sharing.
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Thank you so much. It was one of those situations where I wanted to reach out, but also didn’t want to seem self righteous, you know? It’s so hard trying to be a good parent, and we all have those moments. You blink, and they are teenagers. No more little face asking ALL the questions.
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You are so welcome. That’s just it. Even to reach out in support could be misconstrued.
Zero judgement. None. I get it.
It’s just that with mine I seem to have always felt the weight of each passing minute, so I answered all the questions and not with sighs of exasperation, but with honest to God enthusiasm and joy.
I reserve my right to righteous indignation for crummy drivers on the highway. For parents, I only wish they could *see*. You know?
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