I think i speak for all the mums in the world when i say this-you are never really sure if you are doing all you can for your child. So whether be it taking time off from work to bring up kids or reluctantly getting back to the grind to make a better living for them, i dont think there will be a single mom who can confidently get up and declare-yeah, i am perfect. No one is and moms are no exception. Moms are constantly under stress. Research has proven what we have known for centuries; that when it comes to multi-tasking nobody beats your mom.

What i find disturbing is today's society's over zealous attitude to judge a woman who chooses to quit a lucrative career to be with her child. Surely it must have been a forced decision. Or maybe her husband makes a ton of money. Another would opine, "No, I think she is just plain lazy and using the kid as an excuse"..The way they see it, how could a modern woman of this century actually be shameless enough to not work and accept living on the man's income. The kind of sacrifice and motivations that drive the stay-at-home mom is invariably ignored. The stay-at-home is probably the most under appreciated member of the (non) working class. With no pay and a subject who has literally the maturity of a toddler, she works relentlessly 24/7. No social life, no friend and all her conversations begin and end with the child at home. An excitement in her life would be a new dish made for dinner, difference from the routine would be a different soap on TV (for the fortunate few who can actually get the time to watch TV). With the society at large rebuking her for being so anti-feminist, the average stay-at-home withdraws into her own world, her microcosm.

The child at home is finally capable of fending for itself. Now the average stay-at-home mom (STHM) decides to get back to work after her 'sabbatical'. Employers sneer..'Why the sabbatical..don't women have kids all the time???"..She is deemed unprofessional..some among us are forced to work in sub optimal jobs that insult the intelligence. Employers use the sabbatical as an excuse to deny promotions, hikes and other perquisites. The STHM is again forced to tread on the path of disdain and disregard.

What sets apart the STHM from other working moms is that they put their kids above themselves. With due respect to working moms and all their problems in life (which will probably provide enough content for a whole other blog post), for a woman to put up with a thankless society and a thankless toddler 24/7, without hope for release or a better future, needs a statue or at least an island named in her honor.