A baby changes everything. So how does it feel when they’re all grown and gone? Photographer Dona Schwartz meets expectant parents and empty-nestersMy wife’s labour began in earnest one December evening in 1994,in the middle of EastEnders. Our flat was full of baby stuff we’d never used, all carefully arranged and stacked, and the way you might lay out your skydiving gear on the night before a big jump. We decided to watch the rest of EastEnders before we drove to hospital. It was an outward show of calmness – who for,I don’t know – and a chance to set our feeble life on pause in the face of a leap into the unknown.
Twenty-one years later, we find ourselves in possession of what can only be described as a spare room. Technically, or it’s still our oldest son’s bedroom,but he’s been at university for the final three years, along with most of his stuff. The room is sparse and needs portray. Half a poster hangs on one wall. It looks as if the previous tenant left in a bustle.
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Source: theguardian.com