My kid has been in public school her whole life, she's a freshman in highschool now. I was the first one of my siblings to put their kid in public school. My older brother homeschooled his two kids, and I put mine in public school from the jump.
My mom never gave a single bit of pushback, as if putting your kid in public school and keeping them there was a no brainer.
... This woman who argued with me and used fear to keep me from the public school that I **begged her for**, for YEARS... I got to experience kindergarten. And I frikkin loved it. I wanted to go back... I had a friend at that school... I wasn't allowed. I begged on and off into my highschool years, when I finally realized I was probably woefully behind, on top of the other fears that were instilled in me.
I have watched my daughter have a normal school childhood experience for all of these years, all of things things I desperately wanted and was deliberately kept from ... And I am SO over the moon happy for her, LOVE that I was able to give her the childhood I should have had, or closer to it anyway... But omg the grief.
And when I share those happy things with my mom as I'm filling her in on the family update, and I'm feeling my own hit of grief but also genuinely loving that my daughter is getting these things that I didn't get... And she just casually replies, shares her own similar public school experience... And it just... Kills me.
I almost wish she would have argued with me, ever, maybe then I win her over and we move on, but... The casual acceptance... After arguing with me about MY life when I was school aged... Wtf ??
My daughter just joined an elective that she's really excited about, for instance, and I was telling my mom about it and how excited my kid is for this class, and how good it is for her, etc... and then my mom's reply is, "Oh yeah I was in that elective too when I was in highschool! It was so much fun! I got to learn A/B/C new skills and make some really great friends and... Yada yada... "
And I'm feeling like im this weird outsider in my own kids life AND my mom's life...just weird little me in the middle going "wtf 🤷🏼♀️"... Like... Damn, mom, that sure sounds like a real awesome time you both got to experience... Sounds really fucking nice, tbh... Sure wish I had highschool memories to relate to my own kid with 👍🏼
You mean that getting to do things with kids your own age and around things that aren't about God or politics is like... Just a normal thing people can do?? And you knew that THIS WHOLE TIME??
And I'm just here in the middle SO happy for my baby, and so struck with grief for myself, and my mom is just casually lalala with it and I just... Want to scream. And cry. And I am, literally, tears streaming down my face right now as I write this. Which I did not expect when I started writing 😂
Thanks for listening to me scream, I guess, lol...
Just... Why, you guys? Why? .... Just fucking why ?