For what would turn out to be the penultimate issue of In Retrospect I decided I would reflect a little of my change of circumstance from full-time ‘breadwinner’ to 21st century ‘house husband’.
The words “A change is as good as a rest” appear to have been first used in a poem of the same name published in the Hampshire Advertiser on 29 August 1857, the intention of which was to suggest that, as the Oxford Dictionary puts it, “A change of work or occupation can be as restorative or refreshing as a period of relaxation.
So that’s what I am doing, after 8 years of being the ‘breadwinner’ in our household I am bowing out, letting the Lady wife take the lead and taking over her responsibilities, to become what the 21st century now calls: a ‘house husband’. Contrary to popular belief, the idea of the ‘stay-at-home father’ is not a modern invention, although it could be said to have had a modern resurgence. The concept is actually an ancient one and its demise is due to that harbinger of change: the industrial revolution.”
You can read the full article here: https://inretrospectmagazine.com/article/a-change-is/
