Personal Narrative: I Grow Up In A Traditional Nuclear Family

I did not grow up in a traditional nuclear family. I fit into the 26% of families which are headed by mothers (statistics from Lehrer 246). For most of my childhood I lived in, as Lehrer refers to as a, “Multi generation household”, with my mother, maternal grandparents, uncle, aunt and younger cousin. My mother worked and as a result of being a single mother, had no choice but to take the second shift. However she did have the help of my grandparents who in a sense took the first shift. They took me to school and made sure I was taken care of until my mother returned from work. “But most workplaces have remained inflexible in the face of family demands of their workers and at home…” (Hochschild 12). This was true for my mother who wasn’t …show more content…
I do think household chores were divided fairly; I would help my mother with laundry and also swept, and would sometimes take out the trash. I would help my grandmother by washing dishes and especially in the kitchen where she taught me how to cook our traditional ethnic food. Although I cooked and baked I was never expected to serve the males in the household (my grandmother was usually the one with that duty, as most Hispanic grandmothers are). I also helped with yard work; I would water the plants and help my grandmother in her garden.
When my brother was born in 2010 I started to help with childcare. I would change his diapers, give him a bath, read to him, and play with him every chance I got. He’s five now and when I return from school I take over from my grandparents who are getting older and care for him as well as they did with me.“… working moms, are far more fatigued and get sick more often than non working moms” (Kuori slide 8). My mother is in a continuous state of exhaustion and has a chronic cough. When my mother comes home I often share the “second shift” with her, always helping out whenever I can to lighten her