Prue DeAraugoCareer vs Motherhood
February 7th 2008 05:50
I have been reflecting a bit lately on my life and how it has changed over the last 10-15 years. When I was at university I spent many days sitting in the coffee shop getting high on caffeine and chain smoking cigarettes. In those days I was a staunch feminist tired of men treating us as sex objects and annoyed that we only get paid 80% of what our male counterparts get paid. I was ready to step out into the real world and be a power suit wearing independent career woman.
For a while it was great I went to London and lived there for seven years. I travelled Europe and the States; I sat in the pub with the boys being the perfect ladette. I was not in the slightest bit maternal; in fact I thought that if I never had a child it wouldn’t be the end of the world for me.
Then something changed in 2005, yes I was having fun in the pub glass of wine in one hand and cigarette in the other, but I was coming home every night to my empty one bedroom flat in Surbiton. Don’t get me wrong I hated living with flatmates living on your own is great to a point no arguments about the TV or people eating your food. No the loneliness is to do with not having someone who loves you and cares whether you come home or not. With my family living on the other side of the world I started wondering how long would it take to for anybody to notice if I wasn’t there. By late November 2005 I decided I couldn’t do another silly season on my own and paid far too much for a ticket to Auckland.
While home I found a job in Sydney (ok but it is closer to Auckland than London), cleaned up my act and made a solid base for myself in Sydney. Then my recruiter decided it that I might be perfect for her kiwi friend and decided to introduce us.
We hit it off, and I got pregnant within 3 months. We decided even though it was early days for our relationship, we both wanted to have the baby. She has rewarded us everyday for that decision. Suddenly I feel a love that I never thought I was capable of feeling. I watch her closely for every new mile stone, her first smile, her first laugh, the first time she rolled on to her stomach. I just want to hug her and keep her close and never let her out of my sight. I am in no hurry to go back to work because I don’t want to miss a single moment.
My partner and I are getting married this year and I couldn’t be happier working from home and looking after my baby. Who cares if I never get to be a CEO, I think making sure children grow up to be healthy happy and well balanced adults is one of the most important jobs in society.
For a while it was great I went to London and lived there for seven years. I travelled Europe and the States; I sat in the pub with the boys being the perfect ladette. I was not in the slightest bit maternal; in fact I thought that if I never had a child it wouldn’t be the end of the world for me.
Then something changed in 2005, yes I was having fun in the pub glass of wine in one hand and cigarette in the other, but I was coming home every night to my empty one bedroom flat in Surbiton. Don’t get me wrong I hated living with flatmates living on your own is great to a point no arguments about the TV or people eating your food. No the loneliness is to do with not having someone who loves you and cares whether you come home or not. With my family living on the other side of the world I started wondering how long would it take to for anybody to notice if I wasn’t there. By late November 2005 I decided I couldn’t do another silly season on my own and paid far too much for a ticket to Auckland.
While home I found a job in Sydney (ok but it is closer to Auckland than London), cleaned up my act and made a solid base for myself in Sydney. Then my recruiter decided it that I might be perfect for her kiwi friend and decided to introduce us.
We hit it off, and I got pregnant within 3 months. We decided even though it was early days for our relationship, we both wanted to have the baby. She has rewarded us everyday for that decision. Suddenly I feel a love that I never thought I was capable of feeling. I watch her closely for every new mile stone, her first smile, her first laugh, the first time she rolled on to her stomach. I just want to hug her and keep her close and never let her out of my sight. I am in no hurry to go back to work because I don’t want to miss a single moment.
My partner and I are getting married this year and I couldn’t be happier working from home and looking after my baby. Who cares if I never get to be a CEO, I think making sure children grow up to be healthy happy and well balanced adults is one of the most important jobs in society.
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