family,  holidays

A Mother’s Day Note

May 13, 2012

It’s that one special day which happens just once a year…a tribute to all the mothers out there.  Of course, I’m sure most mothers would welcome being appreciated all year long but at least this is the one day a year when they will receive a certain amount of attention for all they do as mothers.

And mothers do a lot; we all know that.  As quoted from The Golden Girls, “It’s not easy being a mother. If it were easy, fathers would do it.” 

Dads do a lot too.  Don’t get me wrong.  But this is not their special day.

So if you are a mother yourself but you also have a mom or mothers and mothers-in-law who you need to spend time with, how do you accomplish making the day special for yourself as well as everyone else?

Myself, I’ve just come to the conclusion that the actual day of the Mother’s Day holiday is not my own.  I have a mother, a stepmother and also a mother-in-law who we divide our time between.  It’s just what we do and I won’t be selfish about wanting the day all to myself especially when I know some day I’ll miss visiting our moms on this special day once they are no longer here.

I’m also pretty fortunate in that both my husband and also my boys are really good about letting me know how much I mean to them.  I really don’t need a special day set aside to hear words of appreciation and love from my family because I hear them on a daily basis.  I am very thankful for that.

This holiday is more for the moms who do not get the constant words of love and appreciation on a regular basis.  Sadly, there are many who don’t.  While everyone loves their mother, there are many who don’t often show it either out of selfishness, busyness, or maybe even a lack of ability to show emotion. 

But when Mother’s Day comes around, the most selfish, the most unavailable and even the most unemotional child will find a way to do what they don’t find time to do the rest of the year.  Mother’s Day is, in its own way, a magical thing.  This special holiday snaps some of us out of a daze controlled by our self-centered, busy and detached lives so that we can give our full attention to one of the most important people in our lives.  And our mothers, who most often have forgiving hearts, take what they are given without complaint.  I love this quote by Robert Brault, “A mom forgives us all our faults, not to mention one or two we don’t even have.” 

Of course, not everyone is in contact with their natural parents but even for adoptive or foster mothers (and for moms like my stepmother), they too deserve to be credited for what they do for the children they take in and care for as their own.  I found this quote, also from Robert Brault, “There is an instinct in a woman to love most her own child – and an instinct to make any child who needs her love, her own.”  This is so true when it comes to adoptive mothers, foster mothers and stepmothers.

Do you show your mother on a regular basis what she means to you?  Or do you wait until this holiday snaps you out of your daze to do it?  I won’t deny that I probably have my own faults when it comes to showing both my mothers and my mother-in-law how much they mean to me.  I’m certainly guilty when it comes to getting too busy to make time for them.  Maybe this holiday gives me some room to make up for my faults but I hope most of the time, Mother’s Day only confirms for them what I attempt to show them all year long.

Whether you are a mother who is being celebrated or you are celebrating the mothers in your family, or both, it is my hope that this day is truly an enjoyable day.  And here is one last quote I found which hits home about mothers more than any quote yet:

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.” ~Elizabeth Stone~

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