06 Jan That Guy in Costco
It was New Year’s Eve and I saw you.
As my husband and I were trying to survive a Costco run (the prep alone to even go there is enough to make you want to stay home…diaper bag, enough snacks and snack choices to hopefully last more than 10 minutes, pacifiers just in case (please don’t judge), timing it either right after a nap or early enough where you may hit the sweet spot to get a full run in without looking as if you are on the gameshow Supermarket Sweep, bundling up the kids for that one minute walk to the car, etc) and I saw you, two young boys in tow (Costco carts are life to any parent with more than one child) and all of a sudden one of your boys threw a handful of goldfish on the floor. Passersby stared as you were asking “Why would you do that, why?!” and of course your boys were smiling because these little beings like taunting us.
I watched for a few seconds as carts passed by, people passed by as you were on your hands and knees picking them up, seemingly frustrated and just trying to get thru it like we all do. There were looks and stares as people walked by going about their holiday shopping. I ran over to help because I get it. Oh trust me I get it. I realized, these are the moments that unite us as parents. These are the feelings that unite us. These are the times when you know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you are not alone, you are not the only one who feels lonely, defeated, frustrated, insignificant and often times on the brink of losing your sanity to never find it again. The odd thing is we wouldn’t trade it for the world. I saw you.
I didn’t get your name but I want to thank you for this moment. Maybe in some way I needed it and you were put there for a reason. As parents we all need these moments and we need them with complete strangers. We forget that we are enough and only doing the best we can from moment to moment. It’s ok to lose our shit, it’s ok to get frustrated, it’s ok to not be perfect, it’s ok to feel completely over parenting, it’s ok. It has taken me a long time to digest that and often times I still can’t swallow it. We need to keep lifting each other up, one stranger at a time, and passing on that we are enough in all of our madness. Thank you guy at Costco for letting me see you.
You are enough.
Michele
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