Diary of a Mom/Pilot

My name is Juliana, I am a former Flight Attendant and a Mom.

With my previous Flight Attendant job, I was introduced to the friendly Sky. Then I became a Mother, and everyone would question my motherhood skills because how dare I would leave my child behind for 15 days (even if the remaining 15 days of the month I would be present in my daughter's life).

When people would ask me the same question over and over again, I started thinking, "How dare you work in a 9-to-5 job and come home super tired and not even play or spend quality time with your kid? Then I realized, no matter what scenario us MOMS put ourselves in, always someone will judge, we even judge each other in secret.

Times go by, and the sad news comes to the surface: I am getting a divorce. Now I am dealing with the same eyes of judgement: "How do you balance working, training, and being a single mom? You should save all that money and invest in something else that will give a quick return. (I hear that from my family all the time).

The funny part is that my divorce brought me even closer to aviation because I moved all the way from Florida to Arizona in order to fully immerse myself in the school that I love, and believe that I can make my dream come true. My passion for aviation gave me wings to purchase a home a few miles away from my school so I can provide better to my daughter instead of paying rent, I rent the rooms to other students and make connections in the field. I am a better mom to my daughter because I am following my dream instead of following a broken relationship. I am a better role model because I am finally progressing on my training, and that put me in a good mood to navigate my motherhood and deal with "the eyes and inevitable comments that will always happen no matter what."

My daughter is just 8 years old, and because I inspired her, she flew on Young Eagle, she studies Sporty's and knows more about cumulonimbus clouds characteristics than a lot of Private Pilots. All of that because she saw me struggling, crying, studying, missing nights of sleep, praying....

So Yeah, I would say Aviation makes me a better mom because if that is what I love, then my daughter has my best version. I can collect some fruits of my hard work on training, while my daughter shows me dedication on her progress of discovering each step of aviation herself.

For all of us Moms and Aviators; We know how hard it is so let's embrace and support each other.

Big Hugs from a Forever MOM and a proud Private Pilot.

Submitted by Juliana Rutkin