While doing Mother’s Day writing with my first graders, the typical answers came out:
What does your mom like to do?
- “Go grocery shopping.”
- “Take care of me and my sister.”
What is mom good at?
- “Folding clothes.”
- “Cleaning.”
- “Doing mom stuff.”
How does my mom relax?
Some were unsure. One kid drew his mom with her phone. Some said that mommy relaxes by “drinking wine” or “smoking cigarettes”… I thought, Ya know what?! She probably does, buddy! I know this mommy likes her wine!
I wondered, would my kids even know how I relax? My kids call our bed “dad’s bed” because I am never in it…
I had to ask them. And you know what they said?
That I relax by “looking at my phone.” Mmm… guilty. And you know what? I deserve my phone.
But, I digress. The truth is, my first graders also said some of the most loving things to their moms, too: foster moms, adoptive moms, lesbian moms, single moms. They said:
- “I love my mom because she cuddles me.”
- “Because she makes me feel safe.”
- “Because she takes care of me.”
- “Because she loves me.”
“Because she’s my mom.”
And that’s what being a mom is all about right? Unconditional love, laundry that never ends, and finding ways to relax amidst the chaos. Even if it means wine and the occasional cigarette.
Sarah is a central New York teacher by day, and a mom of three boys at night.
Voices from the Village
The Mama Sagas believes that everyone has a story to tell, and every story is worth sharing. We created Voices from the Village as a way to feature the everyday experiences that define modern motherhood. Though these posts may be short, the collective impact they have is a testament to what it really means to be Supermom.
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