Motherhood. It’s the craziest thing I know.
I bring these 3 little bundles into this daunting world. Then I’m expected to care for them. That’s almost insane.
Two very distinct situations happened with my 5 year old today. He went down to the pantry area in the garage to get cereal. He came up and told me that he accidentally knocked over a jar of salsa and that it broke on the floor. I patiently went down cleaned up the mess, picked up the glass as he watched.
He stood for a minute and then asked, “You’re not mad, Mom?”
I kindly told him, no I was not upset with him.
It hurt my heart in that moment to think that I must overreact way more than I’d like to admit. He thought I would be angry for his mistake.
In the other incident he spilled a glass of iced tea over and some spilled onto my laptop. I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. I quickly cleaned it up while I grumbled out loud that I was sick and tired of cleaning up messes today.
Skip forward an hour. I feel terrible. In the first situation I showed him love and grace. In the second I showed him complaining and impatience.
Sometimes I stare in the mirror and wonder. Truly wonder. How did I ever get to the age of motherhood?
I’m still a kid myself. There’s no way someone would actually give me responsibility for 3 other human beings. To care for them in unthinkable ways. Ways far beyond what I could imagine before I laid eyes on them.
Care for them in big ways. Like I actually have to potty train. Feed. Clothe. Teach responsibility. Teach love. Teach them how to walk. How to skip. How to ride a bike. (That one doesn’t come without some injuries.)
Teach them about making wise choices. (That’s a huge one.)
Encourage them to overcome fears. Show them how to truly respect others. Guide them onto the right paths.
Steer them from evil. Protect them from danger. Show them right from wrong.
I ponder. God. Am I really capable of this? Worthy to be a mother?
I make so many mistakes. I screw up time and again.
And you know what God whispers back.
That one is most important of all. Letting them see your mistakes. Showing them how to begin again when you have messed it up big time.
Teaching them to say sorry. And how much value there is in that.
These lessons can’t be just verbalized. They have to witness it.
They have to observe grace.
May we lead not just with our words but by our example of love and mercy.
What lesson have you learned most recently in leading by example?
Love and blessings,
Melanie
Cindy @ Pick Fresh Foods says
Melanie, I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve been in this same situation. Parenting is crazy hard! When you step back and think how you are the ones shaping these children’s lives. They learn from what you show and teach them…that’s a lot of responsibility.
My daughter loves to be in the kitchen and I can be a control freak, so sometimes it’s hard to stop, step back and let her do things on their own. Then when I do… I see her measure, mix, stir exactly like I would do. That’s when I really know these guys are watching all the time!
Melanie says
I know sometimes they stun you with what they have learned. I can be a control freak too. Just on Sunday I let my 9 year old make cookies from start to finish on her own. It was so awesome to see her delight in what she had created and she did a great job.