Guest Column, By Kelly Wassenberg

Kelly Wassenberg is the Albert Lea Tribune’s news clerk and lives in Wells with her family.

Routines. The value of them is never quite appreciated until your schedule gets thrown out of whack.

I’m just now attempting to get myself back into one after being gone from work for over a month. A weeklong trip to Las Vegas was followed by my 17-year-old son having bilateral leg surgery before Thanksgiving. He’s been non-weight bearing for the last four weeks, yet we were told he would be able to return to school within a week or two.

Everything changed shortly  before he was dismissed from the hospital when the doctor started thinking homebound schooling would be a better option.

What was supposed to be me taking a week or two off work quickly spiraled into four weeks just in time for me to come back to work on the Friday before Christmas.

I’m grateful for the experience though as it allowed me time to reflect on many things.

First off, I have to say I desperately need to be able to keep a routine — especially when it comes to sleep.

When we first came home, Brandon’s medication schedule had me waking up every two hours to give him meds. It was like having a newborn all over again.

During that week and a half I felt like I was always running around, yet accomplishing nothing. Keeping my focus on what I was doing and what to do next was a such challenge that I felt like my wheels were continually spinning.

Those first days truly reminded me of my days as a stay-at-home mom. The work I did caring for my son was just as demanding, if not more so than my working at the Tribune, yet the feeling of accomplishment just wasn’t the same as it is when I have a consistent routine of going to work.

A set routine of what I do in the office actually spilled into my after hours routine.

Although I’ll never be a morning person, I missed my 25-minute commute to work. It’s like a meditation time that I don’t give myself if I’m not forced to. That would be the time I’d mentally prepare for what needed to be done that day. By the time I got to work, I’d be able to text my husband and discuss who would be responsible to make sure the tasks of the day were taken care of. The nightly commute home was my time to decide what, if anything, I needed to make for dinner that evening.

I’d set a few priorities on what needed to be done at the house, laundry, chores, etc., and I didn’t fret what could wait until the next day.

Life is so much different when you’re surrounded by the same four walls all day.

You don’t see the three baskets of laundry you’ve managed to fold and put away. You see dishes in the sink, a puppy that needs to be let out soon and realize your son’s drink is almost gone. The list only seems to multiply from there.

The time also reminded me of how lucky I am.

My son continually showed his gratitude for me taking care of him. There wasn’t a day I didn’t hear “please” and “thank you.” He didn’t take my willingness to drop everything to take care of him for granted.

I also reaffirmed my belief that an early retirement might not be the right option for me.

I honestly missed my job, especially my co-workers. Full of an ecclectic mix of personalities, we joke, we poke fun at one another,  we sometimes get on one another’s nerves, but we are like family.

Everyone has their place and everyone makes a contribution in one collaborative effort.

Yes, having a job can require sacrifices, but it has more benefits than just a paycheck.

Families come with their fair amount of sacrifices too, but in the end I think you have to be grateful for something so beautiful.

I would truly be miserable if I didn’t have a son, a daughter, a husband and many wonderful friends and co-workers to make sacrifices for. You can’t be so distracted by thorns that you miss the roses before you.