I'm less morally outraged than I used to be.

Once upon a time I'd get worked up over news stories, politicians, social injustices, lying, cheating, stealing..... now I'm more of a shrugger. It's not that I don't care about those things anymore, I simply have less time and energy to devote to the fight. Most adults grow up sometime in their 30s, there are a few holdouts until the 40s. By the time you have children, you get such a reality check that you barely have time to shove those causes you once held near and dear to your heart into the closet with a promise that you'll get back to them soon. You step into your role as a parent and begin the ride. Once your children start school and school activities, those long posts about the latest shenanigans of our politicians or the criminal of the moment or "what the hell are we going to do about this?" posts, are lost to posted pics of our child at bat, videos of our teens dancing around to video games or the family vacation. Our enraged posts become comments on other people's posts. We've time enough to pop in for a quick blurb and if we're lucky, we might have time to read other's comments as well (I'm not known for being about to do this.)


For those that have no children, I am sorry, especially if you always wished you'd had them. They are simply the best and coolest thing around... and the most heartbreaking and exasperating. I don't know what I'd do without mine. She keeps me constantly growing because she constantly challenges me. And she keeps letting me get away with less and less. In other words, she's an everlasting reality check. That's tough getting used to it the first few times it happens, but you learn to adjust and develop the next level of your relationship. As I've had to turn my attention to her and the world she lives in, the energy I previously used to promote a cause or bring attention to an injustice, is spent in promoting her and bringing attention to an injustice heaped on her. I've become more of a fighter for kids' rights, than my own. I like this new role, but sometimes when I open up that closet and see all those things I cared so much about, they seem like a huge waste of time. Sure, I may have sparked some debate, riled some people, called others on their crap.... I had a great time doing it and met a lot of intelligent people. Then I remember that I've not talked to any of those people in a very long time. 


The fellow earth movers and shakers have moved on and had children; some even have grandchildren now. When we reach this stage, our causes look like: our personal health, our parents' health, college funds and retirement funds. We attend a lot more funerals and far fewer weddings. We long for a good night's sleep. There's a bit of a nostalgia for our carefree lives, but when we look around at the accomplishments of our children.... as we sort through their academic awards, and place their trophies on our mantels, we realize this is where our focus belongs. This, and on that treadmill in the corner, our parent's upcoming doctor appointment, the spring's college visits and how our IRA is doing.