LONDON (CBSNewYork) – Serena Williams reached her 13th Wimbledon quarterfinal today, but she admits all that time practicing on the court forced her to miss a big moment in her daughter’s life.
Instead of getting mom-shamed for it, many are coming to her defense on Twitter with their own missed moments, reports CBS2’s Alice Gainer.
As the seven-time champion Williams overpowered the Russian Evgeniya Rodina 6-2, 6-2, the price of excellence was not lost on her.
Serena Williams and her daughter Alexis Olympia watch the action during the first round of the 2018 Fed Cup at US Cellular Center on Feb. 10, 2018 in Asheville, North Carolina. (credit: Richard Shiro/Getty Images)
She’s talked about her challenging pregnancy that left her bedridden for six weeks and her decision to stop nursing daughter Olympia after six months. But this weekend was different.
“She took her first steps… I was training and missed it. I cried.”
A lot of parents say being a mother or father is hard no matter what, and for some working parents, there’s a constant guilt.
“Sometimes you’re at work and wondering what your child is doing,” said Alfred Varela, a father and grandfather.
In New York City Park, it’s easy to find a park full of nannies, people watching other people’s children while their parents are at work. They say they hear that bit of regret from the kids’ parents all the time.
“Of course there is the guilt because the nanny gets to see everything,” said Norma Prsaed, a nanny who is also a mom. “The first word, the first step, the first word – everything.”
“It was tougher than the scoreline,” Williams said. “I knew we were both moms, and I’m not sure how often that’s happened, if ever. So it’s really cool. You can be a mom, you can still play tennis and you can still be great.”
