Washcloths
Do you use washcloths when you shower? Or, are you more a loofah/exfoliating gloves kind of person? Maybe you don't use any of the above—it's just you, that soap, and the areas that need to be cleaned. Over the years, we have used a combo of all of the above. But, very recently, Ila made us all convert to washcloths because of a hygiene class she took with her track team this summer.
This summer Ila has been doing more things on her own…like bringing herself home from camp and running her two miles per day by herself because her mother is knee deep in ice cream. Here I am at Bloomberg talking about our ice cream during their Ice Cream Friday series. Bring ice cream to your workplace here.
When she got home from this particular workshop, she changed all of our towels and matched them with the washcloths my friend Livy bought us when she visited in July. I completely forgot that we had a stack of washcloths that my mom brought to our house a while back. Clearly, there is a theme here based on our house visitors' observations—they've all picked up that washcloths are an obscure textile in our house.
When Ila came home to declare a war on non-well-scrubbed and exfoliated bodies, I saw a flash of the future—my 12-year-old turning into a young adult with independent ideas and the energy and vision to act on them. I know I'm not saying anything new here, but when you're raising kids, the days are long and the years are short. What a cliché, but what a truth.
This past Thursday, we wrapped the most recent SHMOM cohort with a full table of new moms, lots of ice cream, and a gaggle of very cute babies. As I looked at all of the moms holding their new children, I remembered like yesterday the feeling of being someone's mom for the first time.
Our most recent SHMOM cohort holding a book written by SHMOM Alumna Szilvia Molnar. It’s called The Nursery and it is beautiful.
There is something so deeply profound about seeing a person who couldn't hold their neck up for the first few months of their life tell you and the rest of your family how you need to be living yours. I know my mother feels this almost every time we talk. In her mind, I'm still a baby but now I'm a baby that bosses her around and tells her she needs to start a podcast.
Tomorrow, Ila sets off to a running sleep away camp with her track mates for the next week. It'll be her second year attending and her fourth year running with her team. To see her devoting time and attention to this interest of hers is inspiring and honestly, pretty motivating. She's one of the main reasons I have returned to running, and while I am running with her, she coaches me on my form. To allow your children (whether biological or chosen) to guide you in ways you would not venture so freely is a pretty beautiful experience.
We fit a week’s worth of running camp gear into a suitcase that I hope returns with all of the items pictured here.
In five and a half years, Ila's dance card will be up. She'll be 18, likely off to college, and waging war on some other quality of life topic that impacts her life and likely those of her loved ones. Five and a half years from now isn't that far away and it's also a ways out. By then, I'll be rounding the corner to 50 and can't imagine how overwhelmed with emotion I'll be when she's ready for her next life chapter.
Today, I watched a video of my favorite internet family talking about sending their eldest off to college. I remember when I first learned about them, their child was a little younger than Ila and now she's off to college. How Sway? The profundity of watching a child grow is awe-inspiring even when it's not your kid.
And, I still can't get over the fact that my baby now runs.
Petrushka
Your Local Ice Cream Lady & Life/Business Coach