Today is Mother’s Day. I am a mom, and I am lucky enough to still have my mother with me. I don’t have many memories of Mother’s Day from when I was child other than to go to my grandmother’s house and take her flowers. I was too young to realize that although we honored my mother’s mother, we really didn’t honor our mother. I don’t remember any complaints from her for this oversight. She was happy with the little cards we made for her at school. She was Mom, and like many children, we took advantage of that and didn’t know how lucky we were to have her in our lives.
I used to complain how she would curl my hair in rags every night, and force me to wear frilly dresses. Of course I was a tomboy, so she always had a fight on her hands with the frills and curls. Three hot meals a day was the norm in our house. Everyone’s needs came first. I never thought as to how she probably would have preferred to spend her time reading a magazine or relaxing in a nice hot tub. She was a 1950′s mom, a stay at home mom, a Donna Reed kind of mom.
I am a mom with six wonderful kids- all grown with kids of their own. I remember Mother’s Day when they were growing up. I had gifts of sprouted bean plants in fancy paper cups and cards carefully drawn and colored with lots of “I love yous” on them. Their dad always bought me marigolds to plant- never my favorite- but flowers just the same.
When I go way back, I remember my first Mother’s Day with my baby girl. Her dad bought me a rocking chair I had wanted so desperately so I could cuddle and hold her. What a wonderful feeling that was to rock her to sleep. She was a surprise in my life, but once she came, I was the happiest young woman around. I felt blessed for what I had been given. I loved being her mom so much that I wanted more children.
When the second was born, I was so in love with the first that I wondered how could I love her as much as the first. I needn’t have worried. I had plenty of love to go around. That is how a mother’s heart works. No matter how many children, there is always enough. I had six wonderful kids- trying at times, but the love never stops, the concern never stops no matter their age. They are all gifts, all little packages we mothers unwrap over the years. We watch them unfold in their talents, their personalities, their joys and sorrows. Our pride in them never wanes.
I have never been the kind of mom my mom was. I was not a stay at home mom, a three meals a day mom. I regret that, but I have no apologies for it. Times were different. Two working parents were necessary to keep the family going. My kids had to clean their own rooms, do their part in chores to help me keep the house going. I wasn’t always there like my mom was to bandage a boo boo or have a mother/child talk when there was hurt or confusion in their lives. That saddens me. My kids were on their own a lot when I worked. They cared for each other when I should have been there. I had always worried that they would feel abandoned or hurt that I wasn’t there all the time. I hoped they knew I loved them, despite my working outside the home.
There is a lot to be said for being an “at home mom.” For the young mothers of today, if it’s possible, stay home, be a mom to your kids. There is no more important job in the world than being a mom to your children.
Please comment if you have something to say.
My mom was able to do it for a while, until she went back to teaching. The hand of God was all over how it occurred. But I feel for those who cannot do it and must work.
I commemorate my mom and all moms in my blog post for today…not on Word Press on eblogger. Here is the link…there is also a lovely Giveaway you will enjoy. Happy Mother’s Day. http://www.thefatandtheskinnyonwellness.com/2012/05/commemorating-mom-mothers-day-giveaway.html
I am not a mother myself (well, not to human children…), but try to be creative and nuturing as my life’s path calls me to. My mom is a beautiful spirit whom I am fortunate to still have in my life and who I am extremely close to. I honor her as a woman of grace and intelligence and unselfishness…an inspiration to me in whatever way I can also embody those things. Belated Mother’s Day wishes and blessings to you Cindy, to your mom and your children!
Thank you for your nice reply. There are many ways to “mother” in this life.I feel I’m lucky to have my mother still here, although I don’t get to see her like I would like to. She lives in Northern Michigan – a five hour drive from here. I have so much respect for her independence.
Being a mom, whether one stays home or works outside the house is work but is fulfilling! I wouldn’t trade being a mom with someone who doesn’t have kids!
My mom has been such a high influence in making me who I am. She basically taught me to think for myself, challenge assumptions, never accept less than the best, and always grow and face up to difficulties. She did all of this without much talking, and as I grew up, I learned more about her past and my respect for her grew. My dad was more direct, more insistent in his lessons, but I think my mom’s actually had a bigger influence on creating resilience in my spirit that lets me deal with things maturely. I never hear her complain. She has never been a traditional mom though. She grew up as one of the 8 children in a Palestinian refugee family, and was always rebellious against the role women were supposed to play, and I think that affected how she filled her role as a mother.
She is certainly one of the most impressive people I know, and one of the toughest.
Thanks for your wonderful response about your mother. Mom’s are pretty special and yours sounds like she certainly is and was.