I am no saint.
The bills in the UK are high. Very high.
Rent doesn’t wait.
Energy bills don’t care.
Food prices keep rising.
Work never truly ends.
I understand overtime.
I understand hustling.
I understand doing what you must to survive.
This message is not coming from a place of privilege.
It’s coming from reality.
But this campaign was born from something that stopped me in my tracks.
My son said something simple — and it cut deep.
He told me I’m hardly around.
He said he loves me, but he’s more fond of his dad… because his dad is around most of the time.
No shouting.
No drama.
Just honesty.
And sometimes, the truth hurts more than anger ever could.
He wasn’t accusing me.
He wasn’t rejecting me.
He was telling me what his little heart was feeling.
And I realised something painful but important:
Our children don’t measure love by intention.
They measure it by presence.
They don’t understand bills.
They don’t know the pressure of survival.
They don’t see the weight we carry.
They only know who shows up.
I’m not saying quit your job.
I’m not saying ignore responsibility.
I’m saying don’t let survival steal connection.
Your child gets one childhood.
One version of you at this age.
One chance to feel seen before they grow out of needing you this much.
Phones make it easier to work longer.
But they also make it easier to miss moments we can never get back.
Sometimes presence looks like:
Putting the phone down after a long shift
Sitting on the floor even when you’re tired
Listening even when your mind is full
Choosing one day to fully show up
This campaign isn’t about perfection.
It’s about awareness.
It’s about choosing differently when we can.
Because money can be earned again.
But childhood cannot be replayed.
Don’t let phone raise your child.
Be present where it matters most.
— Adanne Chukwudi Udejiofor
