We had a shed built for which I ordered a tool sorter. Our tool bag was on the ground with many pointy and sharp bits inside and out. Even though the littles aren’t allowed in there, they are bound to find out how keys work and I might forget to lock it. Figuring out which pegs would go where was akin to playing with a Battleship board or Rosie the Riveter Plinko game, and I had honestly THE BEST TIME putting this together. I had a full force satisfied smile on my face by the time I was done.
Why did I have such an exhilarating time doing something rather banal? I had to stop and think about it because it was a feeling that I could tell I hadn’t had in a while. The reward of seeing the work done and feeling good about it was IMMEDIATE. Most of the work I do these days in the doula world and parenting is for the LONG TERM results. When I have to tell Valita not to pull toys away from her brother and when I tell Emil not to throw hard objects, on the best days I feel like a buzzkill and on the worst I feel like a total impatient, repetitive jerk. That furrowed brow I feel up there? Not so sexy! When I catch her sharing out of the corner of my eye, or when I see him deciding NOT to throw a toy train at the dog, that does give me satisfaction points. It isn’t immediate, but rather the result of me saying same things over and over and over. Some other positive parenting results I might have to wait even longer to see, or I may never see first hand, but hearing from other parents that your children have been helpful or polite every now and then sure is encouraging!
Now that I no longer have a job in which I have regular performance reviews for or spreadsheet-worthy results from, I’ll just get more work done in the shed or hang something with the drill when I need a very quick fix of satisfaction!
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