Some people call me a control freak, mama.
And they’re not wrong.
Some people talk about being in flow. I talk about creating the flow and bending the flow to my will.
So when I told people that I planned to spend the summer driving around the country in an RV with my family, some people were… surprised.
And, truth be told, I was a little bit nervous. I thought that being in such close quarters with my family would be tough. I thought I’d hate showering in a tiny bathroom — and sharing a single bathroom with my family didn’t exactly thrill me.
But guess what? It turns out that Covid was the best possible preparation for this trip. We’re used to tripping over each other and lots of forced together time. We’ve been in each other’s space for months now, so that hasn’t bugged me a bit.
Sure, the kitchen here is so tiny that I have to cook meals for one person at a time, while small, hungry humans clamor around me like baby birds. I’m okay with that.
In fact, all of the things that I thought would be hard haven’t been an issue.
I mean, yes, it is not exactly fun when the Wifi is bad — or nonexistent. In our instant gratification world, we’ve (I’ve) become impatient. When I click a button and nothing happens, it’s a touch annoying.
When I’m trying to run a coaching call and the other person says I keep freezing and the audio is cutting in and out, I feel guilty.
But I’m reminding myself to be patient.
Zoom issues happen even when I’m in my home office.
So I may as well be out here, surrounded by amazing views, taking a trip my family will remember forever.
I’m learning to surrender a little bit of control, and to just be. I’m learning to go with the flow as a mom.
If you had told me before this trip that at 10:45 am on our second day in DC, we’d be sitting in the RV Park, and I’d be working while the kids play in the dirt, I’d have showed you my Google Calendar and said,
UM, NO, WE WILL BE OUT AND ADVENTURING AND DOING ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME ACTIVITIES, THANK YOU.
But guess what? We spent the first day in DC adventuring and social distancing our way through once-in-a-lifetime activities, and on the second day, we rested a bit. And so I threw the plan away and decided to go with the flow.
Don’t tell anyone, but I kind of like it.
P.S. Have you joined the waitlist for The Free Mama Squad yet?