From the Editor: The Secret

by Stacey Paretti Rase

I have a secret to share with you. Only it’s not a secret I’m hoping you’ll keep to yourself. Instead, I hope you will share it with others who might not yet be in on it. No, this is not some revelation I had after listening to too much “Oprah and Friends” on XM radio. It’s something that I came to on my own recently, and it has caused me to rearrange my life around its truth. The secret is this: You CANNOT have it all.

That phrase might sound simple enough, but actually believing, understanding and giving in to its reality has not been simple for me. And by the looks of all that is going on around me these days, I’m pretty sure the majority of us (women, in particular) aren’t really “getting it” either. We lead lives in which we appear to have it all—a loving family, adoring spouse, exciting career, organized home and stimulating hobbies. We juggle going to work with doing the laundry with making cookies for the school bake sale. To top it off, we run the streets every day of our lives, making sure that our kids never miss one of their activities; thus perpetuating the myth to our children that they too can have it “all.”

But this is really just an illusion. Somewhere in the precarious balancing act, I’ve come to realize another simple fact: With so much at hand, you cannot give 100 percent of yourself in everything you do. Something along the way has got to give. Understanding this has led me to step down as Managing Editor of Inside Northside. Because, as much as I love my job, I also recognize that I can be replaced here; I’m not replaceable to my husband and four kids.

My decision has been met with heartfelt understanding and support from everyone here on staff. Lori (who has never liked for me to call her “boss,” but always much preferred the title of “friend”) has even developed a new position from which I can still add to the pages of each issue: Contributing Editor. She’s also taught me some hard-learned truths about life that I will take with me on my journey. The first is that you don’t have to do something just because you can. Secondly, the more you have, the more you have to take care of. And lastly, two preteen daughters require more of your attention than a pack of hungry wolves. And if any of you have secrets to share on conquering the latter problem, I’m all ears.

Congratulations to Lisa Daigle of Covington, winner of last issue’s Word Search!