“I’m just a Mom,” a friend told me in passing, as we were chatting about life and catching up. JUST a Mom. Why do we attach that word “just?” Why do we feel the need to defend our role or note that our position is without pay or merit in the business world? Is it because in today’s culture so much pressure is placed on mothers to do it all and not enough value is given to the very sacred duty of raising our kids well?
As “Just a Mom,” you and I are responsible for our children’s entire lives and well-being. When we have new babies, we feed them what feels like around the clock. We hold them whenever they cry and sometimes just because they smell nice! They are helpless and dependent on us for every need and we instill a foundational belief at this tender age, that their needs will be known and met. These feelings of trust, attachment and security are the foundation that the rest of their lives will be built on and that’s no small thing!
As regular ol’ Moms, we teach our children their ABC’s, their shapes and colors. We teach them to look both ways and to not talk to strangers. We sit and listen to them practice the same song for hours for their concert, in what can only be described as an act of sainthood. We teach them how to do everything from [writing] their name to ride a bike. Maybe it’s just me, but it actually felt like a huge parental achievement when I finally taught my child how to tie her own shoes!
It is amazing in and of itself that we keep these sweet little people thriving, learning and growing on a physical level and even greater still, that we are a part of teaching so many developmental and educational milestones in their lives. However, beyond caring for their immediate needs, we also have the monumental responsibility and joy of showing them right from wrong. We are our children’s first moral compass, in a world that seems to have lost it sometimes. We are the first place they learn love, empathy, and kindness. We do our best to model positive behavior for them to mimic. We have a pivotal role in shaping exactly what kind of person they will become and how they will subsequently change the world.