My finger eagerly slides under the envelope flap. There's the sound. Rip, rip, ripppp. My excitement is terribly misplaced. I clearly missed the NHS logo on the envelope. It was a reminder for the dreaded cervical smear test. I could happily give up opening mail for a year just to avoid that letter. Don't get me wrong. I think it's an essential service but it doesn't make it any more of a pleasant experience. Although, I do have to wonder if it will be less uncomfortable now i've given birth? Just a thought.
Surely, this letter must be wrong. It wasn't too long ago that I had my last one and I know they are only offered once every three years. Then it hits me. Three whole years has passed since my last smear test.
Slow down Time. I'm not ready yet.
Is this what happens after you have a child? Time thinks you've had your fair share of slow time. It deems giving birth as the qualifier for your upgrade to the fast version of time. Is time like the internet? With varying download speeds?
When you're younger and you think back over the last three years you can remember that a lot has happened in your life. Now, it all seems to feel like yesterday. I was looking at Lady F and thinking, how on earth did you get to be so big so fast?
Wait, didn't our parents always say something like this to us when we were kids?
Our parents weren't mad. It's actually true. My theory is this. We're told the best thing we can do for our children is to get them into a routine. With a routine comes repetitive days. Breakfast, play, nap, lunch, nap, play / visits, dinner, bed. As our routines are repeated over and over it becomes difficult to remember how this week differed from the last. Time falls into the routine black hole.
Is this how it is it going to be from now on? Can we make a deal Time?
A few people have already tried to make a deal with time but have failed miserably so I don't like my chances. Firstly there was the inventor of Botox. As far as i'm concerned Time did not keep it's end of the deal. You can always tell that the difference between a younger woman and an older woman with botox. I'm not fooled.
Then there was the creator of the Per Una range at M&S. They kicked out all of their older 'fashion' range and brought in a younger style of clothing aimed at the older woman. They even brought Twiggy back from non-existence. Time dropped it's end of the bargain again. The younger generation failed to shop there and it became obvious that all of the mums in the school yard were wrongly wearing Jeggings.
Why can't we be more like the Chinese?
As a society we tend to focus on the negative effects of getting older. Have you ever noticed that most ancient proverbs are Chinese? That the wise person in Kung Fu Panda is old? Then there's the Karate Kid. That's because they are respectful of their older generation. Seeing them as wise people to learn from.
I'm hoping that we become more like the Chinese in our household as my daughter gets older. As I say, "in my day" she will hopefully reply "that sounds like an interesting story, Mother, do tell me all about your experience so I can learn from it."
Now, about that smear test.
Photo credit http://lukelimblog.com/how-to-manage-time-wisely-as-an-internet-marketer/
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