This too shall pass.

Anybody ever have one of those moments? You know, you’re eating leftover bacon (from dinner) while watching a clip of Ruth Bader-Ginsburg talking about “work-life balance,” that a dear friend posted on Facebook… oh yeah, and you’re crying (because, of course, you agonize over these sorts of things). Ok, so, yours might be a bit different than mine. I’m still pretty sure we’ve all had that moment. I’m not sure what the answer is. I know the question: how do I give up more of my time with my wife and kids to go back so that I can work more? Maybe your question is the opposite. Maybe you just don’t know how to give up more work time to go spend time with your wife (or husband) and kids. If that is the question that you face, I can clear up the confusion for you, in a heartbeat. You see, your kids… well, they won’t be young forever. You will one day desperately wish that you could get back to right now. Even if right now is a time that you presently wish to escape. The reality is, if I offered you the desired escape, you’d likely pass on it, realizing what you’d be missing out on. The tough times are only tough until you realize that one day, they’ll be gone (save, of course, for grieving the loss of a loved one). Your baby will sleep through the night; but they won’t be your baby anymore. Your teen will grow past their rebellious phase; but they won’t live in your home anymore. Even more pressing for me, currently: your home will be clean and in order and your calendar clear to work as many hours as you’d like… but you won’t have a seven year old daughter that adores you more than she adores the rising sun and two ten year old boys that worship the ground that you walk on. You won’t be “suffering” through the disarray, side by side with your beautiful and amazing wife, anymore… because that time of “suffering” has past. It’s easy for me to tell you why we should all put down our phones and leave work a little early to spend time with our families… I just can’t tell you why you should work a little more, at their expense. For that explanation, you’ll have to ask someone else.