Ever since Miss 6 was born she’s had several ‘other mothers’ – namely her 3 older sisters, but this comment is about the elder one of 9 years.
So many times when Miss 6 was a baby, Miss Then Nine would sidle up quietly beside me as we went rushing out the door and say “Don’t worry about a bag Mum, I’ve packed some nappies and wipes and a change of clothes…”
Starting work has meant dropping the 3 girls at school earlier than before.
The last thing I saw as I drove away this morning was Miss 16 fixing the littler persons bag straps and doing up the zip on her jacket.
Today the 3 caught the bus home together for the first time. It was raining so I met them at the bus stop – where the first thing I saw was Miss 16 walking toward the car holding Miss 6’s hand. Not once did I need to say anything like “Don’t let her out of your sight” – I knew it would be so.
Some days parenting has some bottle-able moments – and today, these were mine. And when I was pregnant with the 5th, I got a bit panicked by HOW ON EARTH can we POSSIBLY give each one all the love that they need?!?
I mentioned this to our lovely OBGYN who was himself a father of 6. He leaned back in his chair with a knowing kind of a smile and thought for a moment before he answered. I don’t remember all that he said, but one thing was confirmed as truth the very next morning.
The thing I remember was this – that we’d learn that as parents, we didn’t need to be the sole providers of everything in life that they needed… and that an advantage of a big family was that some of what they needed, they would receive from – and be, to each other.
I was a little sceptical about that – only until the next morning when I went to wake the kids for school to find the littlest one in bed with the biggest one, sharing her pillow while she read him a story.
And I relaxed.