Race to the Finish Line by Nicola Burkitt
It’s a silent phenomenon. The slow encroaching burden of always keeping our shit together creeps into our lives before we even recognize it.
We as women, carry the load of organizing the household along with everyone in it. We are outrageously and wonderfully conscious of our parenting skills and the type of childhood we want to provide for our children. We listen to podcasts driving to work, text our partners to listen to it (which they often don’t), flick through the photos that the classroom teacher posts on the education apps during our lunch break, and race home from work feeling flustered before we have even opened the door to spend time with our kids.
Stepping into my home, I am welcomed with three little sets of arms wrapping around my waist. The loud shouting ensues, “Mummy’s home!” and the dog barks excitedly. My partner is often busy in the kitchen cooking dinner but stops to kiss me hello.
After a few moments, my eyes start to dance around the room. I notice the pile of washing in the corner I have yet the fold, the toys all over the ground that the puppy will consume, the finger marks on the walls, the dirty clothes left on the floor of the bathroom, the crumbs left on the table, the school bags and shoes scattered in the hallway leaking sand onto the floorboards, and the smeared toothpaste across the bathroom sink.
I’ve read articles, listened to podcasts, and talked to friends and family about the sheer panic of not feeling on top of it all the time. But here I am, internally panicking as I mentally write a list of things that I need to do that night. Suddenly, there are teacher emails reminding me of the excursion tomorrow I completely forgot to pay for, and I realize I haven’t finished preparing for a meeting at work. So, I stay up late after the kids go to sleep, pay for the excursion, finish prepping for my meeting at work, clean, give my partner and puppy some affection, then continue building my Pinterest board for future house designs - whilst researching how to upskill at work and how to meet my child’s needs.
It's a race to constantly keep up with it all, whilst constantly hustling to better what we currently have. The restlessness and yearning to always do and be better is so deeply ingrained within us, we need to consciously remind ourselves regularly that the superfluous stuff doesn’t matter. We need to learn to prioritize, delegate and relieve some of the pressure placed on our shoulders – there is no finish line. Even if there was – what prize is at the end of it?
Nicola Burkitt is a writer, law-student and full-time working mama living in Perth, Australia | Instagram: @nikkiburkitt | Email: nicolaburkitt95@gmail.com