Yesterday, while crossing one of the bridges over Fort Point Channel, I called Peter to tell him something long overdue, that he is a good son, and I appreciate him.
I was thinking about a friend of mine who’s been hamstrung for years from any kind of extra-curricular professional enrichment opportunities because of her daughter.
As a result, she now has no retirement savings, owns no property, and is basically consigned to dead-end jobs for the rest of her working life, which probably means until her dotage.
In contrast, while Peter and I were a single parent family, I was able to pursue professional opportunities requiring long commutes, even out-of-town commitments, because I could trust him to keep himself and the house safe from harm.
I was able to devote a lot of after-work hours to study and skills enhancement because he was never the kind of demanding kid who needed attention every 20 minutes because we’d run out of his favorite kind of soft drink or because he demanded to go to the mall and shop.
Rather, from a very young age, Peter was self-reliant and unselfish. He started working around age 16 (it may have been even younger), transporting himself on a little motorbike and later, his own car.
His independence gave me the space to grow professionally, take risks, and in the process, keep our family going.
Now that he’s breadwinner and head of household, he works long hours to provide for his own family.
It would have been easy for him to fall into the only son of a single mother slacker stereotype. Instead, he’s worked hard, gaining a national (and even international) reputation in his field, acquiring friends seemingly everywhere, and becoming a recognized success in an intensely competitive field.
For example, a couple of weeks ago, he was interviewed on the PBS segment, “Marketplace”.
He’s also a devoted grandson and as far as I can figure, a caring husband and father.
I’m proud of his accomplishments and hope he knows that.