noun, plural ad·vo·ca·cies.
Words were exchanged, emails were sent, and when it's all said and done....my child's needs were met. And although it wasn't comfortable, it was necessary. It's okay that I was taken out of my comfort zone, because what I really care about is that my child has what he needs and is given an opportunity to excel.
the act of pleading for, supporting, or recommending;
I'm a believer in advocacy. In my work, I advocate for others daily. I advocate for mothers, fathers, and babies. I advocate for other doulas, especially those I've trained or those that I represent in the state of Florida. I teach advocacy and we go in-depth about what it means to advocate for someone, something, or some cause. Advocacy can be used through empowerment of others, through speaking up for what you believe in, or through utilizing the tools and channels at your disposal to fight for your rights. Advocacy, when used appropriately, can truly be a change maker.
Above all of my uses of advocacy, as a parent, I am the ultimate advocate for my child. I believe in the statement that I once heard that basically said something like, if not me, then who. Really, think about it. If you, as a parent, are not willing and or able to advocate for your child, to stand up for his or her rights and/or best interest, then who will? This statement fuels me.
As the beginning of each school year brings challenges, this year has been no different. We have entered into a new era in the Harley house, the middle school only era. For this ONE YEAR both of my kids will be in middle school- Lord, help us all. Middle school is a time of challenge in and of itself. It's a time of great change in our kids and we can see it happening each and every day. I think that sometimes when I put my 13 year old boy to bed at night, he grows so much that my eyes look at him at a different level in the morning. And, 6th grade is certainly a time for rapid change for our daughter. It seems that suddenly, there's a bigger emphasis on looks, and outfits, and friends, and extra curricular activities and less on family time. Emotions are up and down, we have moments of joy, and lots of crying over spilt milk(so to speak). Big change.
This first week of school has been really hard. We are going through some challenges at home, at work, and with kids. Add to that unexpected surgery 6 weeks ago for me, and a rather substantial hand injury for dhubby this weekend with trips to urgent care to get stitches, and some days I feel like we're falling apart. We have kids with different extra curricular activities that have different needs. One needs to stay at school and the other picked up right at dismissal. Homework, lunches, classes, teachers, forms to fill out, lockers, pe outfits, supplies, sports practice, working, teaching, cooking, cleaning, produce sorting, laundry....4 days in and I'm already exhausted. My own poor dad has been trying to get me on the phone for 2 weeks without success.
With all of that said, I'm still the advocate. Exhaustion is not an option. I will, till my dying day, advocate for my child.
Unfortunately, sometimes a parent advocate can be viewed as a burden to those in her path. I want to say that I don't care....but truth is, I do. I do feel for the staff for being over-worked, over-stressed...and dare we say, under-paid. It matters to me that we have a good relationship with the people who surround our students for more time that we do ourselves. And, I care about them personally.
There's just no time for being exhausted....there's too much advocating to do. We're all advocating for something, sometimes, many things. Today, I advocated for my child, tonight, I'll advocate for the mamas in my care. The big difference there is that I'll be advocating through education, information, and empowerment. I just hope they don't see these dark circles under my eyes.......
