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| Mothers
are extremely talented people. They have to be. Think of all the different
jobs they are responsible for—even when they aren’t employed
outside the home. I can’t think of any other single occupation
that requires so much knowledge and ability and so little formal training. A mom must have the organizational ability of an executive assistant. She keeps a calendar of dentist and doctor appointments, dance lessons, and school activities. She makes sure there are no scheduling conflicts among the entire family. Who else could juggle Susie’s voice lesson and Kevin’s drum lesson and Johnny’s swim team practice with her own activities and never miss a beat? A mom is also a transportation specialist. Whether they take on the job of chauffeur themselves or coordinate efforts for the carpool, they are experts at balancing all the travel needs of the family. Surely train dispatchers and air traffic controllers don’t face problems any more difficult. A mom must be sure that Tom has the “kid car” home from play practice in time for Susan to go to work. She faces the logistics of preparing a nutritious meal for the whole family, getting Jimmy to religious education class and Karen to her Scout meeting, and still make it on time for her own night class. On a good night, the older kids can help taxi people back and forth. And thank heaven for the nights Dad is available. Mom must be a master chef when it comes to feeding her family. She uses imagination when preparing brown bag lunches for those days the kids don’t like the school menu. Mom must also be prepared for those days the kids ask if their friends can stay for dinner. Of course, the kids never ask BEFORE you begin preparation, and it is usually always the night you are using up the last of Sunday’s leftovers. She must also be prepared to bake cookies for the bake sale and treats for the school party at a moment’s notice. Moms are also medical specialists. When the kids are in their infancy, Mom is the one to take care of diaper rash, colic, and upset tummies. As the kids get older, it is Mom who kisses booboos and bandages scraped knees and elbows. Mom’s medical expertise stretches into psychology when she eases the battered egos that come with playground rivalries and heals the wounded hearts of her teenagers in love. Most of all, she is the family practitioner who nurses her children through bouts of measles and mumps, tummy aches, and the sniffles and sneezes that come with colds. Other jobs moms must be prepared for are in the area of law enforcement. Mom becomes police officer, judge, and jury when it comes to enforcing her own rules, regulations, and curfews. She also becomes an attorney when defending one of her brood before neighbors and teachers. When one of the kids is grounded or is in “time out,” Mom becomes the warden who establishes the proper time limits of the punishment. They are also detectives who must find a lost article of clothing or a library book. They are the referees who handle sibling disputes. They are teachers who must know almost as much as an entire university’s staff in order to help with homework. These are only a few of the many jobs Moms must be prepared to handle. Do you know of any other job with so many requirements and so little training? Happy Mother’s Day! |
On-the-Job Training? |
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