Stepping Away

My friend N has two masters degrees and worked her way up in big pharma and one day she just quit. This is a woman who can stay in protracted fights and not flinch. Career growth had not come easy to her and it also involved needing to make way for her husband who is also doing very well for himself. When I asked her about the timing, she said her only daughter had turned fourteen and waiting any longer could prove a big mistake. This was the time to come home and stay home. N is one of the most thoughtful and methodical people I know so clearly that was the right decision. This essay talks about a broader trend N seems to be a part of. 

.. the so-called “teen-ternity” leave is becoming a thing. Parents are increasingly looking to take a step back from their careers to be around more for their kids during the trying teen stage. Some parents, like me, are fortunate enough to be able to work from home, either full- or part-time—not that it’s easy to juggle work and keeping teens away from drugs, alcohol, sex, and social media, even if your desk is the kitchen counter.

N is very clear-eyed about life after her only child leaves to college which is about four years out. She does not see it as being easy or even feasible. The husband has stepped on the gas as far as his career now that N is home. She says she feels fine about it, would be wasteful to not take advantage of the situation. The family unit will come ahead from this decision like N says. Maybe she will have a chance to get to know the young woman her kid is growing into. Maybe the seeds of a lifelong friendship will be sown in her last few years at home. No fancy job with a great paycheck could make up for that, even a chance of that I'd say. Atleast N will know she gave it her best shot. That does matter.