Motherhood is a badge of honor that I am very proud of! I will never forget the tremendous joy I felt when I discovered that I was going to be a mother. Although there was a bit of fear and uncertainty, the most prevalent emotion was that of amazement and euphoria. All the love and tenderness that I felt for John, my husband of over thirty-five years, somehow grew to gigantic proportions and filled my life.
The pregnancy had its ups and downs as my body changed to accommodate the life growing within me. For the first time, what I ate, the clothes I wore, and even the position I slept in were on someone else. While I had never considered myself selfish, pregnancy started my boot camp training in altruism.
When my first daughter was born, all the discomfort and pain of childbirth were forgotten and replaced by immense pride. She was absolutely beautiful and I could hardly believe that John and I helped create someone so perfect and full of unconditional love. We both spent hours inhaling her sweet baby scent, gazing at her angelic features and hugging her. I slept fitfully because it was a pleasure to get up to feed her, change her diapers, and just play with her.
The childhood stages and toddlers flew by with new wonders almost daily. I felt like I had given birth to the smartest baby girl around as I watched her learn to sit, crawl, feed, walk and learn to go to the bathroom. I will never forget how excited I was the first time Ma-Ma called me. It was amazing to see this happy little person observe and process the things around her.
The early childhood and elementary school years brought me the experience of watching this new soul learn to interact with others regardless of my influence and protection. I saw her choose friends and develop relationships outside the family nucleus. This was also the time to explore activities and interests that would shape this child into adulthood. Looking back at school plays, dance recitals, music concerts, and church holiday programs, I realize how much of my social calendar was devoted to children’s events.
Our family grew at this time to include two more daughters. I experienced those same joys and wonder with each new birth. The girls were absolutely adorable. However, the dynamics of motherhood began to change as I repeated the early stages of development with them while discovering new things with my oldest daughter. I didn’t want to neglect anyone’s needs, so it became a challenge to make sure I respect each child’s individuality. I also discovered that the distinctive personality of each child was evident from birth. Just because she had a six-month-old baby didn’t mean she was an expert on all six-month-olds. He had had to allow each child to develop at his own pace.
Adolescence brought even more challenges and excitement. Watching my oldest daughter grow into a young woman made me reflect on the best things she wanted to impart in her life. It was also during this point that he began to question human sexuality when our family grew to include a son and another daughter. Once again, I was in awe of the beautiful babies that now completed our family.
As a mother of five children, I simultaneously experienced the busy years of adolescence, adolescence, the last years of elementary school, the first years of elementary school, and preschool. Phew! This is where the privileges of motherhood included a crash course on how to juggle many hats at once. It was also when I discovered that raising a son was a very different process than raising daughters. My son toughened me up when I learned to endure when he experienced minor injuries from sports activities.
When all the children attended college, I was able to experience the pleasure of watching each person equip themselves with the tools to have a positive impact on society and continue the cycle of life with their own families. I am so thankful that they are all happy young people who are successful in their chosen professions. The privileges of motherhood include unconditional love, immense joy, selflessness, learning to adapt, and knowing when to relax and let go. I agree with the quote from Mildred B. Vermont, “Being a full-time mother is one of the highest paying jobs … as the pay is pure love.”