A woman writes about how difficult things were after her divorce. She had two young daughters, who like many young children wanted to Disneyland. She noted that this was something she could not afford at that time, and she told her children that they would go, but she would need to work and save for the trip.
The girls, who were riding around a supermarket at the time in a shopping cart designed to carry two children in a front section that contained steering wheels. The girls were having a good time “driving” around the store. On her way out to the parking lot, she had an inspiration and decided to make this shopping cart like a “ride” at Disneyland.
She raced around the parking lot, running while pushing the cart, and the girls found it exhilarating. As she returned to their vehicle, another customer drove by, and the driver pointed at her and yelled: “Best Mom Ever!”
She found that unsolicited comment extremely gratifying. After a divorce, finding anything to be grateful for can sometimes be difficult. Dealing with all of the complexity of parenting plans, child support and being a single parent can be overwhelming. Nevertheless, this woman was able to find something both simple and free that she could do for her girls that provided joy.
Many worry during a divorce that they will never experience joy. For all the stress and worry wrapped up in a divorce, stories like this demonstrate that when your keep your eyes on the prize of raising happy well-adjusted children, divorce is not an insurmountable hurdle, but merely a bump in the road to your real happiness.
Source: huffingtonpost.com, “ Stranger’s Comment Helped Give Me Perspective about My Divorce,” Kathlyne Pham, June 9, 2016
