DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: I have always known my daughter is not the 9-to-5 desk job type, and I knew she would pursue a less conventional career, but I have to confess her new job is causing me to lose sleep, which I already openly told her.
She is currently training to be a lineworker for the power company where she lives in Montana. She moved there from her Indiana hometown when my husband and I downsized to a two-bedroom apartment, and she decided to move to a place she enjoyed when visiting family there when she was a child and a teen.
I respect her desire to follow her inclination to work at an important job, but think she could have found a less dangerous one, and one where she would not be in such a minority as a woman. I have watched videos on lineworkers, and found statistics confirming this is one of the most dangerous jobs anyone can have.
I want to support my daughter, but how do I do that when I am terrified something terrible is going to happen to her on the job? --- WORRIED MOTHER OF A LINEWORKER
DEAR WORRIED MOTHER OF A LINEWORKER: As I’ve said before, worrying is a built-in accessory when it comes to parenthood, and I can understand your feelings. But your daughter has chosen her path, and now it’s up to you to make peace with it, as hard as that may be for you to do right now.
It’s good that you respect her choice, and it should almost definitely help if you stop hunting for facts and figures that will only feed your fears. Rather, try, as best you can, to put some confidence in your daughter’s abilities and her being properly trained and equipped to perform what is most certainly a crucial job as safely as possible.