The other day my 5 year old son, Abraham, looked up at me from behind his mile long eyelashes with his mop of curly hair bounding in all directions, and asked: "Mama, can you juggle?" He had been reading a book about the circus. "Of course!" I exclaimed while chuckling under my breath.
I often:
1. Juggle [make dinner while folding laundry and entertaining the cranky 2 year old]
2. Walk a tight rope [tiptoe down the very noisy creaky stairs without waking sleeping children while dodging Lightening McQueen and Mater who are parked on the third to the last step]
3. Fly thru the air with the greatest of ease [dive across the room to catch the juice cup falling off the edge of the table while heading a soccer ball into the makeshift goal of pillows while screaming goooooaaal].
I am, after all, a mom.
This discussion is about another Balancing Act, though. Representative Lynn Woolsey, a mom, clearly understands issues facing moms today and has, for several years, introduced a comprehensive legislative package called The Balancing Act. It includes family friendly policies such as: paid family leave, public universal pre-school, investments in child care, universal school breakfast, benefits for part-time workers and telecommuting incentives. The Balancing Act is powerful and forwarding thinking but has not gotten the attention it requires and deserves. You can sign the petition here.
I, for one, hope that this bill and others like it (The Healthy Families Act) get folks’ attention. We need to see real changes in policy. Most families that I know struggle day to day. One quarter of families living in the US with children under the age of six are living in poverty. So here's to all you folks who perform the balancing act each day. Now go sign the petition and have a happy day!
