A Mother’s Days are Long, but….

A Mother’s Days are Long, but….

Last Thursday, I went to pick up 4-year-old Yaakov at gan, and I was surprised to find all the little boys waiting in the gan next door. Turned out the municipality was renovating the ceiling of their gan. I wondered why for approximately a nano-second, but then promptly forgot about it.

And then yesterday, I found out from another mother that the municipality had renovated the gan’s ceiling at the cost of thousands of shekels to accomodate a single boy in Yaakov’s gan who is hearing impaired. When I asked her about it this morning, Yaakov’s teacher told me that Israel’s “Law of Accessibility” required this kind of renovation to accomodate children with special needs. And I remembered how my daughter’s school is building an elevator to accomodate a single severely disabled student.

For one child. The value of a single child. Unbelievable.

Today, walking with Yaakov to gan, I noticed his bouncy blonde peyos, the traces of a milk mustache (which I wiped off with a licked finger), his Mickey-Mouse rainboots that he has refused to take off since we bought them, despite the blue skies and the 92 degree heat.

And I thought–one child. The value of a single child.

We were walking at a relaxed “Eema is wearing sandals and not running shoes” pace to gan, but still Yaakov said, “Eema, could you please walk more slowly?”

Funny, he never asked to do that before. But I did. Strolling ever so slowly, with Yaakov’s hand in mine, he pointed up at the cedar trees in the middle of the boulevard. “That one is about to fall…that one is the highest of all!”

And I remembered Gretchen Rubin’s deeply moving video “The Days are Long, the Years are Short.”

I’ve posted this before, but I think that, just like there are certain important things that we do once a year– like file taxes and go for a checkup at the doctor, watching this video should also be on that once-per-year list for every mom. For me, it’s definitely transformed the thousands of walks to gan I’ve taken since I first watched it.

Please note: this video might not be suitable for sensitive male viewers.

6 comments

  1. those short movies get me so choked up. my children are adults, and those days of being with them 24/7 are long over. we cherrish all the time we spend with them on shabbosim/ yamim tovim. If there is one thing I can tell parents of small children, its really enjoy the time you share with them, It really passes quickly.

  2. Couldn’t resist sending this too. 🙂

    Right On Schedule?

    by Bracha Goetz

    At six, they wake me up.
    I pull the covers on my head.
    Still, their cries persist,
    So I get grumbling out of bed.

    Well the days go by. What am I waiting for?
    I want to be the kind of mother who gives them much more,
    But the hours pass, and then the years fly too.
    Don’t let me miss my chance before it’s through.

    At eight, they’re off to school.
    No time to think. I’ve got to rush.
    There always are sweet parting words.
    “Your hair’s a mess! Where is your brush?”

    Well the days go by. What am I waiting for?
    I want to be the kind of mother who gives them much more,
    But the hours pass, and then the years fly too.
    I’m missing the whole point of what I do.

    So soon, they’re back from school.
    I throw in dinner while they fight.
    I’ve got to keep them occupied,
    So I can make it through this night.

    Well the days go by. What am I waiting for?
    I want to be the kind of mother who gives them much more,
    But the hours pass, and then the years fly too.
    I’ve done everything but what I meant to do.

    At last, it’s getting late.
    Homework is done. They’ve all been fed.
    Keep up the pace. Race through Shema,
    And get them swiftly off to bed!

    Well the days go by. What am I waiting for?
    I want to be the kind of mother who gives them much more,
    But the hours pass, and then the years fly too.
    These moments when they’re young are far too few.

    Now that the day is done,
    I face just what I didn’t do.
    Their little bodies did get care,
    But their neshamas have needs too.

    Well the days go by. What am I waiting for?
    I want to be the kind of mother who gives them much more,
    But the hours pass, and then the years fly too.
    Don’t let me miss my chance before it’s through.

    Bracha Goetz is the author of 32 children’s books, including Let’s Stay Safe, Sat on a Hat, and Hashem’s Candy Store: http://www.amazon.com/author/spiritualkidsbooks-brachagoetz.

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