… Mark is "in trial" right now. For those of you non-lawyers (non-paralegals, non-legal assistants, and not married/partnered with anyone in the legal field), that means he pretty much does not exist from my perspective. He’s living in a hotel about 2 miles from our house – but it might as well be at the end of the world for as much as we are going to see him for the next week or two, at least. I’m lucky to get a 2-minute phone call or email each day, confirming he’s alive. So right now I am a single mom. Doing everything myself, including Mark’s "jobs" (taking out the trash, doing the dishes), and with no one else here to help entertain a 2 year old. The funny thing is that after the first day, I adjusted pretty well. Since no one else was going to do it (dishes, tidying, trash, packing Gracie’s lunch) I went ahead and did it, instead of procrastinating. I’ve developed routines for the end and beginning of the day, so I’m more efficient to get it done and get us out the door. And, since I don’t spend time taking care of my husband or talking to my husband, I have time to get the other stuff done. Gracie was REALLY upset the first day or so. When daddy left, she cried. I told her the truth (that daddy is going to work for a week, a long while, and then he’s going to come back). The next day at school she cried all day and the first thing she said to me when I picked her up was "where’s daddy?" But the next day she was fine. And today she did ask me twice "daddy okay?" I said yes, daddy’s okay, and he’s at work. She said "hi, daddy!" I asked her if daddy could hear her and she said "yes". And perhaps he can.
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I'm Elizabeth Potts Weinstein, a writer, teacher, and coach.