The mum who started a family, whilst living away from her own.

To the mum without a village.

The mum who started a family, whilst living away from her own.

I know how entirely alone you feel at times. How you crave an extra pair of hands. A friendly face. A casual cuppa and a chat. A knock on the door that isn't the postman.

There are no date nights. No brief reprieves. Your partner, and your partner alone is your entire village. Liable at times to bend and break.

As lockdown draws to a close, you wonder what's really changed as you look on enviously at these distanced doorstep reunions.

But you will find a strength in yourself that you never knew existed. A self-reliance. The ability to strike up conversations with strangers in the hope that they too might be looking for their next best friend.

And one day it will all change, with one genuine connection. The beginnings of something. A telephone number exchanged. An ease of conversation. A common ground. The ability to be yourself. Comfy chats in messy homes. A favour bravely asked. A favour returned. An 'In case of emergency'. A house nearby that your child knows the directions to.

You are not alone in your aloneness.

There are loads of us. That followed the partner. Or followed the job. Whose heart will always partially belong elsewhere.

Written by our contributing writer Karen McMillian from Mother Truths

'Mother Truths: Poems on early motherhood' is available to buy HERE on Amazon

Image by Jonathan Borba.

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