Motherhood

Me and my little sister.

"A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie." ~ Tenneva Jordan

How can I explain what motherhood is to me? I'm not a mother, so I can't speak from that point of view. Motherhood is a lot of different things to me. I'm sure that the things I feel for my own children will be very different then what I feel for my neices and nephews. But, in the same vein, I feel that there are several different types of 'mothers' that we all usually expeirence in our lives. Grandmothers can be mothers to their grandkids, in a way. So can aunts, and even close friends. I think that women can even be motherly to other women, not just the other women's children.

I have fond memories of spending time with my grandma growing up. She taught me things that my mom could not. I remember spending summers with my aunt in Florida, she was very much like a mom to me during those times. My close friends mothers became like my second (and third) mothers. I know I have felt like a mother to some of my very own friends. I feel like a mother (a very proud one) when I help my five year old nephew learn something new. It's an amazing process to watch his little brain absorbing the information put in front of him. As women, for the most part, I think it is always in us to just...'mother'.

My own mom is a diamond in the rough, and I love every pointy edge of her. We became a single parent household when I was 10 (my sister was 5). Things were never easy for my mom, she had to work very hard to support us. But she did work...a lot. She pulled three jobs sometimes with overtime. Actually she still works more than one job. Although she was often very tired she never complained, not to us. For most of my youth we lived with other people. Sometimes family and other times with a family friend. My mom gave up the idea of having a place of our own so that she could provide for us in other, more important, ways. I never felt cheated because I had to share a room with my sister for all those years. And I know my Mom worked hard to provide us with the nice things other kids might have had. Even though I might not have seemed very greatful at the time (hey..I was a teenager), I understood even then what my mom did to provide us with those things. I never really felt poor, even if we didn't have name brand clothing or brand new cars.

So, my own upbringing my by mom has defined what motherhood is for me. Sacrifice for those you love, getting the job done no matter what, and never quitting even when the load seems to heavy to bear.



* see other 'motherhood' pictures and stories here.