To be crying at this

[appledoors]

I saw it on TikTok, then noticed it shared on Facebook too. I usually hate soppy sentimental crap but the fact that I am that exact age (32) right now (and very PMS-y) and I don’t know it just hit a nerve 😭

…………….

I'm 80 years old, and somehow..

I woke up in my 32 year old body.

Just for one day.

I wake up to little hands tugging at the blankets.

"Mummy, wake up!" they shout.

I blink, and I sit up slowly.

My babies. They're small again!

I gasp. I cry.

They climb into bed giggling, wiggling.

I used to rush through mornings.. but not today.

I pull them close.
I hug them tight.
I kiss their messy hair.
I hold their little hands.

This time, I soak in every second.

I catch my reflection in the bathroom mirror.

No deep lines.
No grey hair.
My younger face...
I used to think I looked old at 41.

What a silly thought.

I stare for a moment and think, "You are so beautiful."

I find my husband in the kitchen, making coffee.
He looks strong, young.

I wrap my arms around him so tightly.

He looks surprised.

Maybe we didn't hug enough back then, I think.

We talk about the day nothing big.

But today, it all feels big.

I memorise the sound of his voice.

We pile into the car, kids arguing over seatbelts.
Someone drops a snack.
Crumbs everywhere.

I used to get so frustrated.

I soak in the noise, the chaos I know my car will be quiet and spotless for many years to come.

But I'll miss the mess.

Dinner is loud and unorganised.
No one wants to sit still.
There's shouting, giggling, a little arguing and so much life.

I don't clean up right away.

I just sit and watch.

Trying to burn it all into my memory.

Before bed, I pick up the phone.

I call my mum. And I hear her voice.

Mum..MUM.

I haven't heard this voice in so many years..
I close my eyes and let her words wash over me.
I tell her I love her again and again.
I never want to hang up.

This time, I don't leave anything unsaid.

At bedtime, I don't skip pages in the story.
Not tonight.
I read every single word.
Then I ask, "Can we read one more book?"
They say yes.
I don't want this day to end.

I got one more day.

And this time, I knew.
This was joy.
This was love.
Those little hands.
The loud, messy dinners.
Our strong, young bodies with no aches or pains.
Our parents who are still alive..

It all mattered so much more than we ever realised.

Yes, and it reminds me of that 'Welcome to Holland' shite that makes every parent I know who has a child with a disability want to drop-kick passersby.

I think visiting a different age once a year would be a neat idea. Sort of "a change is as good as a rest."

Mother of newborn and toddler PastMe would adore a day in my 50s with full night's sleep and plenty of time and space to myself. 50sMe would enjoy a day with my babies.

But the post itself is mawkish and full of Women! Know Your Place! nonsense.

You sound bitter. I took the intended message as enjoy living in the moment and appreciate the little things.

When I'm rushing through bedtime stories to my kids I often stop and remind myself to slow down because I'll miss it when they're older.

Men never get told to live in the moment and appreciate the little things. Why is that?

You sound like you don't understand 'gendered subtext'.

I wonder if it's an age/ age of children thing? Mine are 17 and 14 so in 4 years they will both be adults, and poof it's gone so fast 😭( I know the buggers will keep turning up after that but still) There a new Sam Ryder song called ' Go steady' that I think is the theme of 'Parenthood' that puts a massive lump in my throat.
However that poem leaves me a bit cold! My mum is in her 70's and can't wait to get rid of us when we go and visit her but she's not averse to a bit of nostalgia despite not enjoying parenthood at the time or the reality of grandparenthood really.

Wow theres a lot of hardfaced women on here.

I agree with you OP, made me cry and i'd give anything to have one day back.

Could be - because mine are a similar age and we’re close enough to the baby years to feel it’s gone fast, but they’re still young so we haven’t seen them grow up and move away yet.
There’s a reason that scene in Toy Story when he goes away to college is such a tear jerker!
You still see them as your baby, but it’s very clear that the years are passing.

What's hard faced about being able to critically think about the content and quality of the writing?

It's tripe.

They do. My youngest's nursery sent home a similar styled poem in homemade Father's Day cards last year.

https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/350014202301796377/

Sentimental nonsense for people who found chicken soup for the soul too edgy.

I’m in my 40s and my best days are ahead of me.

I am in my fifties too, and miss the days when the DC were small sometimes. One has gone away to uni and I miss him. But I can't bear mawkishness.

Other than a slight urge to vomit I'm with you.

Oh good lord. This makes me want to throw up, sorry.

Exactly. Or it's more that they don't get told that they were wrong not to enjoy cleaning up after messy small people at the time.

And the bollocks during lockdown where memes urged you to relish the fact your kids weren’t in school, take the opportunity to slow down, spend quality time with them and make memories that would last a lifetime 🙄

When I’m 80 I hope I’m in good health and exchanging some right rollicking filthy laughs with my grandchildren not being some ‘it was better in the past’ emotional drain. 🙄

Load of nonsense. Didn't make me 'cry,' it just made me roll my eyes. 🙄

Agree. ^ Terrible! 😖

God yes. I hated the lockdown so much. Though I know so many loved it here.

Clearly in the minority here but I really liked it .

Yeah, that was a load of old bollocks as well. 😆

Surely this is exactly the point of this piece of writing? Sort of 'smell the roses', 'you don't know what you've got till it's gone'? It's a cliché yes, but it's a cliché for a reason. A way to reframe the everyday.

Btw, I'm childfree and have a poor relationship with my parents, but I can still see the meaning behind the writing and why it could stir emotions despite being dry-eyed myself.

Personally I thought that was the exact point of it. I didn’t see it as looking back, but more that if you focus now on all the boring bits, you might miss the lovely bits too.
I don’t think it’s meant to be some super deep commentary that women have to enjoy the drudgery - more that yes, the drudgery is there, but there are also moments of beauty and love that we should appreciate at the time.

Only on Mumsnet, where everybody is keen to prove how cool and unaffected they are to a group of internet strangers. Sentimentality is a perfectly normal human emotion in the real world.