It may not be your fault, but that doesn’t stop the hideous, gut wrenching feeling that you experience when you are late for the school run - matched only by the same hideous gut wrenching feeling of being late for school.
We’ve all been there, and the guilt feels insurmountable in those awful, sweaty, longest minutes and seconds until you arrive. An exaggeration? Absolutely not. It would be a difficult, an almost impossible task, to find a parent who has not been in this situation before. And yes, it happens. Quite simply, it happens. Life happens, tyres are flat, trains are delayed, swimming kits are left at home, morning alarms do not do their job, lunches are forgotten. The list is endless. And the most guilt fuelling of all is being at work.
A meeting that over runs, a colleague or project that needs your attention. You’re trying your best to be professional, engaging with the task or problem at hand, aware you should have left ten minutes ago and the whole time, hoping no one notices your eyes darting to the clock which feels like something you’re doing every second.
You dash to the school. How upset are they going to be? Will your child be the last? You know that you will be judged by the teaching staff. After all, this isn’t your first time!
These feelings and this guilt is real. This is how it feels as a working parent when things like this happen.
Our working lives are important. Meetings run over and often for good reason. Rewind an hour, and the same situation could be very different. You could have raised a ‘Fetch’ on the We Are Fetching app
By downloading and sharing the app with friends, you can be sure that you have help on hand when you need it most. Perhaps there are parents of other children in your child’s class on your trusted list, probably the ones they enjoy having playdates with. Maybe your mum and sister are on your list, if they’ve helped out in the past.
A few minutes pass and voila! Your fetch request has been accepted. The relief, the uncontrollable smile, and the opportunity to be able to give 100% to your colleagues for a little longer because you know that your little one is being picked up by a trusted friend. The school has been notified and you know that your child will be looked after - not to mention thrilled at the prospect of an impromptu playdate.
Fetching is the free app that helps you share childcare amongst your network of trusted friends and family. To change the way you manage your childcare, download the app today!