A DEMANDING THURSDAY

Morning came early yet again. I was awake before 5,00h and sent a text message to my boyfriend at the exact time he was sending one to me. This coincidence seems to happen often with us and today was no different. We saw each other on Skype for a few minutes before he left for work.

The challenges of a long distance relationship are great. Spending the past two and a half weeks together was nice but not without its challenges. Travel places added stress to an already stressful and frustrating situation. The frustration of knowing I will have to leave again, of us not seeing each other for months and having to remain apart for a while longer, and having to delay the plans we had for summer. Skype helps a bit but can never take the place of being together in person. Much patience is needed in our case but patience is not our strong point.

Our focus is divided into two time zones. We both automatically calculate the time in each other's time zones. His midnight is my dinner time. My morning is his time to leave for work. Somehow we make it work. We can only look forward to our patience being rewarded in the end.

The afternoon brought on more challenges on this demanding Thursday. I let the children walk home alone from the bus stop to the front door - a two minute walk at most. Sage was displeased with this situation as he did not like Saffron telling him to what to do and how to walk. She stated she was protecting him from any cars which may come their way. Somehow he saw things differently and appeared at my door crying. He was inconsolable for quite a while. Gladly the girls were well behaved which helped.

Getting to the root of Sage's displeasure was my goal. After the surprise snack of puffy pancake with strawberries I had waiting for the children when they arrived home after school, I took Sage upstairs to read him his new book - The Construction Alphabet Book. Unlike the girls, who enjoy reading and books, he was not thrilled with my getting him yet another book. He wanted more Lego bricks and sets to build. He expressed his displeasure with school yet again. 'I hate school' he stated. 'I hate learning' he went on to explain when I inquired why he hated school. I asked him what I could do to make learning more fun.

My sole idea at the time was to read him the book about construction. I saw a small smile and excitement as we read. Perhaps he did not like the fact his teacher has been away this week. A change of teachers, as a change in family life, has a way of upsetting children and causing them to act out in ways they would not before. More patience is needed in this case as well. Putting together a broken family will take a while. Balance is what we all need. And more patience.

Sage was better by the end of the day. He asked me for papers so he could make a surprise for me. He drew me two pictures - one of me and him standing under black storm clouds with rain pouring down on us, the other of a double rainbow. He also had Saffron make a paper boat for him which he then coloured in red-violet. It reminded me of the paper boats my father used to give me as a child. Now my children were giving them to me. Life continues with all of its demands and rewards, along with the belief that things will get better with time and experience.