Having it All

When tuning into NPR on my way to a meeting yesterday, Sonia Maria Sotomayor, Associate Justice on the Supreme Court, was on the Diane Rehm Show discussing her new book on the market. I was sort of zoning out, an activity I like to partake in when the baby is not in the car, but one part of the interview I did listen in to was when Sonia Sotomayor was asked by a caller, "How do you have it all?"

I think as mothers, wives, friends and colleagues we aim to have it all. The perfect work-life balance, a packed social calendar, the ability to tuck our children in every night and see them every morning, and still satisfy our own needs. 

Sonia said it herself, "You cannot have it all, all the time." She continued to describe the working mother who spends time with her children, but thinks of the pile of work on her desk. Or, the stay at home mom, who thinks about wanting a pile of work on her desk to get back into the adult world.

Instead of focusing on having it all, at the same time, she suggested we give ourselves a break and realize that what we are doing is hard and not always enjoyable. 

To hear such a powerful and successful woman state this, made me feel a little bit better about the fact that I was happy to have a 25 min car ride alone. 

So, the next time you are feeling down or think one of your girlfriends has it all - the house, the husband, the kids and the job - just remember, she really doesn't and that is okay.

Here is to enjoying kid-free car rides, reading to your kids, making dinner, meeting that deadline and getting 15 minutes of extra sleep :)  To me that would be having it all!