I remember meeting Susie Boyce for lunch at LaMadeline in the early spring of 2012. I’d sent her an email after reading her recent Cross Timbers Gazette column, “Momsensical.” I was impressed by her message and felt we had a lot in common, including the fact that we both had five children around the same ages.
Susie and I stayed in touch. Later on she met with an unfortunate accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Susie loved writing the column for our local paper, but at the time she decided she wasn’t able to continue. Knowing I was an aspiring writer, she suggested to publisher Max Miller that I take over her spot.
To say I was honored and thrilled would have been an understatement, an actual paid writing gig!
My first step was to name my column. I was at a loss and, of course, took to Facebook to ask for ideas. My friend Ginger suggested “Something to Muench on,” and I thought it was a fabulous way to play on my last name and make it meaningful.
For the past 9 years I’ve written once a month about family, my thoughts on parenting five kids, marriage, and different aspects of being a wife, daughter, sister, friend. My goal each month is to give readers a little different outlook on a common life topic.
You know, something to chew on, lol.
The bulk of my writing has been about parenting because it’s the foundation of life and one of my main purposes since I became a mom for the first time as a teenager in 1987. That baby became a young adult who went through active addiction to alcohol in 2008. He inspired not only my parenting wake up call, but my personal awakening as well. Today he is more than 13 years sober.
To be honest, I often think of my son Nick as someone who’s given my life direction and purpose not once, but twice. When he was born, I was just kind of going through the motions of freshman year in college with no real end goal in mind. Twenty years later, when he was in active addition, I got to better understand the ups and downs of parenting adolescents which led to my goal to help other parents in difficult situations with their young adults.
Which is exactly what I am doing today. I coach parents of 18 to 25-year-olds all over the world via Zoom. Parents who are at their wits end because of their son or daughter’s mental health, substance use, or just plain failure to launch. I work with the parent on the only thing they have any control over…their part in the relationship and the often unhealthy, dysfunctional patterns that have developed.
I love what I do. In between that, and supporting my husband in his business, as well as remaining a present and connected parent to my now five adult children, I’ve decided I need to let some things go.
One of them, unfortunately, is this column. This will be my final contribution to what is a fantastic local resource. Maybe, one day, I’ll take all of my columns and publish a book…
If you’ve been a loyal reader, thank you. If you’ve seen me in public and let me know you enjoy my writing, I’ve always been humbly touched to hear your feedback.
A final, parting thought, and the last page of my current book, is one I hope you will reflect on as you continue to parent. And that is…Our children come through us (or to us), not for us, except for the lessons they reflect to us (during their journey) in an effort to grow us up along the way.
What have your children taught you about yourself and about life? Shoot me an email and let me know. You can reach me at [email protected]. Peace out!
 GIF.gif)
