“You don’t need direction, you know which way to go
And I don’t want to hold you back, I just want to watch you grow
You’re the one who taught me you don’t have to look behind
Oh yes, sweet darling
So glad you are a child of mine”
A mother’s job is always evolving, changing, growing. You enter this with certain ideas in mind about what you want for your children, who you want them to be, how your days will be spent. Then you realize that more than likely your vision of your future children is far different than the reality.
When I imagined my children I pictured dark haired, tan, pixies dancing about. Little girls with big dark eyes who loved to sing and perform like me. Lol, imagine my surprise when I ended up with 3 little carmel haired girls, one of which has blue/green eyes! One of my daughters hates it when people watch her, is not into dance or singing, and prefers Legos over musicals. Another daughter is destructive, messy, and adores glitter and dancing. It didn’t take me long to realize that these girls of mine have their own personalities, a wonderful mix of sass and individuality. And it was in both our best interests to just let them be who they were instead of who I thought they should be.
Too many mothers waste precious time and energy trying to change their little ones. Trying to tame wild energy, push quiet sensitivity, restrict uniqueness. For what? For an ideal in our head of what should be. So much could be accomplished if instead of fighting with our kids we embraced, encouraged, simply loved. It is something that I am working on as well, but have seen how much of a difference it makes in my relationship with my children.
Everyday I thank my lucky stars for these little girls in my life. They are healthy, happy, and know that they are loved. This Mother’s Day, instead of expecting gifts and special treatment, I am reflecting on what kind of mother I want to be and how incredibly grateful I am to be a mommy. Happy Mother’s Day dear friends!
