Growing Up Solo: The Kids Are Alright
Today is a special guest post authored (albeit under some parental coercion!) by my oldest daughter, Elana Joy Israel. As I’ve always said, I started solo because I didn’t have any other options, but I stayed solo (with a small team) because it was the best option as a parent.
For those of you who are considering starting a law firm but wonder about the impact on your kids, here’s some proof that they will turn out OK. And to learn more about starting your firm, pick up a copy of Solo by Choice: How to Start Your Law Firm and Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be here and help keep the book a No. 1 bestseller!
Growing Up Solo
by Elana Joy Israel
What was it like growing up as a daughter of a solo lawyer mom? There are many things I remember, but growing up solo did not mean growing up alone.
In fact, it meant quite the opposite.
Growing up solo meant that my mom was there at 4:15 to pick me up from the bus stop. Growing up solo meant that dinner was ready on the stove when I walked in the door. Or it meant many nights that dinner wasn’t cooked, but that my mom was there to order take-out for us. It meant that sometimes my mom was late to pick me and my sister up from school, but she always did. Eventually. It meant that sometimes my mom was too busy working late at night to watch tv with us, but still had time to drive us to school in the morning. And it meant that my mom was at almost every school play, mock trial tournament, and countless other performances.
Growing up solo meant that many times, my mom had to travel on business trips and leave my sister and me with our dad or grandparents. But it meant that many of those times we could go with her. It meant going to Las Vegas when I was 9 and staying in a gorgeous hotel. It meant going to Paris when I was 13, and eating chocolate crepes late at night under the Eiffel Tower.
Growing up solo meant bragging to everyone in my elementary school class (and now my grad school class) that “my mom runs her own law firm!”