Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Street Cred

Several years ago before Grayson was even a glimmer in our eyes, I gave a speech for work at a Mothers of Preschoolers (aka MOPS) group. This gathering of young mothers was held in a local church and I very distinctly remember going in thinking I would have all kinds of things in common with these women who were, after all, around my age. Quite the opposite happened and I left feeling like I was from a different planet.

It wasn't that the ladies weren't welcoming, it was just that once they found out I wasn't a mother (and at the time wasn't even considering having children other than Roxy) the conversation seemed to wane. As they swapped child-related stories, I listened intently but had nothing significant to contribute back to the conversation. I dutifully gave my speech and they were an attentive audience, but I still felt like I briefly entered into an alternate universe.

I had never really experienced a situation where my personal life impacted my professional life in terms of perception, but it was eye opening to say the least.

Fast forward two plus years and I was invited to speak at a different MOPS group which took place this morning. I was looking forward to it now that I could do the secret mommy handshake and despite being a full-time working mom, felt I would be more relatable with the group. I'm happy to report that I didn't leave feeling like an alien. I'm still quite intrigued by the whole social experiment aspect of the mom/non-mom and working in-home/out-of-home dynamic. I may make a career out of researching this in my next life.

Now if I could just figure out a way to get the senior citizen groups I speak with to stop referencing my age it would be a home run. Guess that will have to come with time and a few more gray hairs.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Just tell those senior citizens (in a nice tone, of course!) that you have made parents, extreemely happy grandparents. So, you have that accomplishment in your "very young age"! After all, most of them are grandparents too!
Well, maybe it's worth a try!
Later, Pappa