Sharing Me

By Joy

Life at work has kicked up a notch and lately I am cramming more than my normal 50 hours into my 40-hour week. My life is so incredibly structured that the slightest balance shift in any facet causes overflow into all other parts. Work is spilling over into my home life and to keep it all together, there are rare occasions when I have to bring my children into the office with me. If I had remote access, I would have the luxury of over-working from the comfort of my home without dealing with the drama of brining my children into the office, but alas, that is not an option for me in my current role.

So, when I take my children into the office with me, I run down the list of ‘don’ts’.

- Don’t touch
- Don’t run
- Don’t yell
- Don’t breathe!

Then a few minutes after my last words, the guilt hits me. As a working mother, my children spend very little time with me as it is, and now they have to share the time that they do have with me with work as well. As much as I love working, I love spending time with my children even more and want to enjoy their childhood as much as I can. It is unfair now for them to suddenly have to share their allotted time me with the thing that allots them time in the first place.

I am working on getting remote access. There will be trials and tribulations with that line of work as well, but I think that if the trade-off is that I spend more time around the people and things I love, then to me it is not that much of a bum deal.

Joy is a "Work It" writer. Read more about her.