I am constantly saying to my kids and reminding myself, “give yourself a cushion”, especially in the morning as we are heading off to school. We live quite a distance from the Middle School and the High School—give or take on any given day, it could be as little as 20 minutes to an hour or more to get to school based on weather conditions, traffic accidents, or construction.
Sometimes we learn about when those occurrences are happening through a traffic app, receiving a text message, or by radio. Because, on most days, we don’t know until later on down the road what delays, if any, we may encounter, I have encouraged my kids to allow themselves a cushion to arrive to school safely and on time.
There is anxiousness when leaving the house at just the right amount of time and then something unplanned or unexpected occurs and there’s a shortage of time. I’ve expressed to my kids that I love them and care about them and that safety is more important than rushing to be on time. Leaving with plenty of time to take a detour or hang out in traffic if necessary due to it being backed up or slow and go helps alleviate stress and feeling rushed.
When has your commute to a destination been delayed for whatever reason and because you left home with plenty of cushion time, you felt relaxed and comfortable that you would still arrive on time?