Parents are people too

My recent holiday at home was not just one that involved too much good food (the joys of a fully stocked fridge!) family and lazy days in the sun - it was a period of transition for me.
My mom's getting married this weekend - to a guy she absolutely adores called Pat (who wears waisted Tee Sav shorts and tucked in golf shirts...cringe) and this means that my brother and I are no longer the sole focus of her attention.
Ouch, it seems that no matter how old you are, the experience of your divorced/widowed parent getting a new partner is tough on you: Your old routine of coffee out, shopping for fun and cooking together in the kitchen is no more....because she's no longer doing that with you.
And no matter if you're a toddler, teenager or twenty-something, it's hard to get used to not being the centre of attention.
So it's time to grow up and realise that parents are people too and just like I have someone to love and be loved by and have coffee, go shopping and cook with, my mom  deserves that too.
And hopefully once they settle down into married life, we can go back to doing those things when I come home once in a while for a visit. I really hope so. It's time to see my mom as my friend rather than the 'maternal care giver for life and money-spender-on-me' role that I expected her to play before.

But for the rest of the time, I have my own life here in Joburg and being young and alive it is time for some adventure! And, of course, it is comforting to know I have a home in Curly xxx