Mother’s Day 2023
To all the women out there…. And all the children.
Mothers Day…. Another Hallmark holiday to remind us to honor our moms. It has been around for over a 100 years now. I wonder if moms were appreciated prior to 1914?
It’s not a bad thing, taking a day out of the year to remember and celebrate mom. Because most moms have taken on that role with a selflessness that often puts them on the back burner for years and even decades. Regardless of the child’s age or independence, it’s a job that never quite ends. Hearts strings are tugged until the day we leave this earth.
It’s an amazing journey, motherhood. There is this endless sacrificial care and love that motivates a mom to remain steadfast and determined in raising her children. When there is victory, it is mom who celebrates. And when they struggle and fail, it is mom who carries the load.
She juggles 20 things at once, a balancing act like no other. She makes it look easy. She’s strong and fierce protecting at all costs. She’s mom and only a woman can be mothers. It’s a gift. A gift from God to women.
I am one of the lucky ones. I grew-up with a seamless childhood. I lived as children should live, carefree, happy, safe, and so well-loved. Years of wonder created by my mom.
My mom took her role seriously. It was a part she had to show up for everyday, and she did. She was present in my life and upbringing. She taught me the hard things in life. She disciplined me and I desperately needed it! She worked to keep me on a path that lead to life. I am a lucky one.
But for others, Mother’s Day is a day to be avoided. It comes with painful reminders of great loss or absence. It is filled with a void so deep. Hurt upon hurt and scar upon scar. It is pain upon pain resulting in a day they want to run away from altogether. And I know many folks in this camp.
So many are without their moms this year. They’ve passed on. Maybe they passed away when you were young and you’ve missed a lifetime of what everyone else seemed to have. Or maybe the loss is recent but still so fresh because it was all too soon to say goodbye. The emptiness is only magnified on this day. They left behind broken-hearted children of all ages who just want one more hug. It’s a tough day.
And let’s face it…. There are many folks who have a mom and yet don’t have a mom. They suffer the pain of a fractured and distant relationship. They were abandoned. They were replaced by substance or someone or some thing that was more valuable than they were. They stand at a distance observing what they’ve always longed for, an unconditional love that most moms give. They have a mom who wasn’t there, and couldn’t show up to meet their needs. They blamed themselves. Mother’s Day is hard.
Maybe you’re that mom. Maybe you lived a life centered around anything but your children. Years have escaped you and you now live each day in painful reflection desperately longing for a do-over. You find yourself yearning for a chance to make it right. You long for that inroad of mercy bridging the gap of loss. You are in desperate need of forgiveness, healing, and restoration for what has been destroyed. Guilt and regret are weights lived under. Today is a day of sadness.
And for the mom who has lost a child. Oh the agony this day brings. It is a reminder that you will never hear from that son or daughter you birthed years ago. It is a reminder that the emptiness is still as real and raw as it was the day they left. It opens up the floodgates of “if only” thoughts hovering over this gloomy mother’s day. It is a day where the remembrance and mourning of your lost child is intensified. Memories and photos widen the wound that will never heal. It is a somber and excruciating day.
And then the there is the mom who is separated from their child. The agonizing burden of a child so close and yet so far away. Maybe they’ve been on a wayward path that has created a painful distance and a damaged relationship. You miss them and long for them but are incapable of reaching them. Days turned into weeks and weeks into years waiting for the prodigal child to come home. This day is marked with a dark cloud.
And to the woman who remained barren, never able to conceive. Never able to adopt. Never able to have children. Oh the torture this day brings. Facebook photos of moms everywhere celebrating the dream they longed to live. Monthly reminders of what couldn’t be, heavily hit the heart on this day. There may be a feeling of isolation and longing that only intensities on this day. When moms everywhere are being honored, there is a woman hiding in her tears. Mother’s Day magnifies an emptiness only they can know.
And finally, maybe you are that empty nest mom. Your children have grown. They’ve moved on. They are moms with children of their own and you feel forgotten. This day can be lonely. Know, your job paved the way for their success.
Today, is Mother’s Day. Today many women will be celebrated. Today many won’t. Today will honor many woman while today will crush many others. Today millions of women and children everywhere will laugh and smile. Others will be fighting back tears.
It’s an interesting day, this Hallmark holiday. It’s a mixed bag of emotions depending on your story. But know this,
you are seen by the Creator himself. Jesus Christ calls you daughter. He calls you child. Regardless of your story, your place, know that the Father holds your joys and tears in the palm of his hand.
Be gracious and kind, abounding I love because for every heart that is overflowing in fullness this Mother’s Day, there is a heart that is breaking.