In This Lifetime

Five years ago I was impregnated by my ex boyfriend which he never knew because I never told him. “Good morning, mom! It’s the last day of school today!” “Yes, baby! And I never saw you this excited for summer break, you even woke up on your own.” “Because you promised that we will go spend the whole summer in a beach, mom! I will be able to learn how to build sand castles and I will meet new people too!” “You still remembered that?” “Andre remembers everything!” I laughed at the energy of my own son. He is really excited for his summer break because I told him last year that I will let him spend the whole summer in a beach when he cannot enjoy his summer break last year because he wanted to join his friends in a summer program at a fast food chain where he learned a lot of things. I prepared his favorite meal for breakfast, the spam-omelette that he has been craving ever since he was able to eat something else apart from gerber and mashed potatoes. “Don’t you really want me to just separate those when cooking?” He has this habit that I have been trying to break since then. It is him patiently separates the spam from the scrambled eggs before eating. “I want it done like this, mom. You know that already.” I sighed at the thought. I can never really take that away from him. Andre’s currently in his preschool and his graduation will take place next week. And I have already been able to book our accommodation to the beach where he wanted to stay for summer. Because if there is anything that my son got from me, that is my personality of not forgetting anything that was said, promised or done by anyone to me. And I am proud because Andre got that. In that way no one can fool him. “Thank you for the food, mom. It’s very delicious.” “Of course baby. I made that with love.” “I know.” He reached to me and kissed me on my cheek before heading to our bedroom to get his bath towel. He is ready to take a bath. Sometimes it takes us forever just to get him to take a bath, and it is sometimes stressful but what can I say? It is a part of the baby package I bought when I decided to run away and take all the responsibility for my child. As I helped him take a shower I started to notice the progress he has been making since I started teaching him how to bathe himself. He now knows the difference of the hair shampoo and body soap, he still tends to play with it though but that is the reason why I am here to make sure that he will not play with it. He knows where the toothpaste is placed and even with his soft reflexes he can now brush his own teeth. “My classmates will surely miss my handsome face.” “What?” I was shocked when I heard that from Andre. He is currently staring at his own reflection in front of that mirror in our bedroom as I was getting his uniform from the cabinet. “My classmates told me that I have a very handsome face and that they always wanted to see me. They will miss me when they can’t see me during summer, mom.” I facepalmed and laughed it off, my son is really innocent. He makes me want to pinch his big cheeks. “I love you, mom! See you later!” He immediately ran into their classroom when we reached his school. I smiled when I saw him greet his teachers and classmates. He always have this high energy when he is surrounded by happy people. He surely makes the whole environment happier and louder when he likes the people around him and that makes me happy for having him as my child. He actually helped me get over with my past even if he knows nothing about it. I also smiled to the other parents who were watching their own children. “What will Andre do this summer?” “He will spend his summer at the beach.” I answered the Sarah, a parent around my age who became my friend since our children were classmates since their first year in school. “That would be great. I wish I didn’t have a job to do that for my children too.” “Hey, don’t be discouraged, you’re taking them to Disneyland right?” “Yeah for a day.” “I haven’t taken Andre to Disneyland yet.” “This year. You’ve been taking Andre to every child’s dream places since he started remembering things. And that is really wonderful.” Sarah is happily married with two children. Her husband Eric works to provide for their family but Sarah never wanted to just stay at home and ask for his husband’s money so she works for them too. Weird because if I were on her place, I will enjoy what my husband is providing me so I can focus on our family more. Plus Eric’s job is a high paying job. It is already more than enough to feed two families with a sure extra for the family’s savings and other expenses. But let’s put Sarah aside. I am Athena, a part time business woman, and a full time mother to Andre. My business revolves around skin care basically from head to toe. It is just a small business in which I was able to manage and maintain since Andre was born. It is quite in demand in our city right now and somehow around the country but it is not that big like the other famous brands that you know off. A’s Skin Care as what it is named is getting along with its loyal buyers for its effectiveness and everything. That is all I can say. And that is what helped me survive the life as a sigle mother in which I will forever be grateful for.