5/3/09

Mothers



I received this email from my sister & thought it was worth posting on here too...

I got this from a friend in the ward.  A lot of us feel the same way at times... that our lives are mundane or we get lonely because our husbands work so much in school.  So I appreciated this and thought you might like it, too. 

Love, Ginnie

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jennifer S.
Date: Tue, Apr 28, 2009 at 9:24 PM
Subject: Mothers
To: 
Hello my friends,
I was just reading about motherhood and then thought about all the beautiful mothers out there, who, like me, have chosen to stay home day after day and raise these precious babies.  It's not easy, and I often find myself alone so many days and evenings (as you know).  But I have been praying fervently to feel the kind of honor for myself that I feel for every mother out there, all the women in the world sacrificing so much for their children.  I wanted to share some excerpts from a talk President Hinckley gave back in 2000. I was in the MTC then, and didn't really feel it applied too much to me at that point.  But reading it tonight meant a lot more to me, and I wanted to share it with the mothers I love and respect and admire.  We really are a force to be reckoned with.  We are all mighty, mighty women doing so much good right now.  I hope we can remember that when life is lonely, dirty, boring, or tiring. :)  We really are in this together.  And our babies are lucky to be born to us!
I love you,
Jennifer

"Tonight I cannot talk directly to all of you. I have singled out one segment of this vast congregation, and that is you who are mothers. I might include those who will become mothers. What a wonderful thing you have done as mothers. You have given birth and nurtured children. You have entered into a partnership with our Father in Heaven to give mortal experience to His sons and daughters. They are His children and they are your children, flesh of your flesh, for whom He will hold you responsible. You have rejoiced over them, and in many cases you have sorrowed. They have brought you happiness as no one else could. They have brought you pain as none other could.

You have nothing in this world more precious than your children. When you grow old, when your hair turns white and your body grows weary, when you are prone to sit in a rocker and meditate on the things of your life, nothing will be so important as the question of how your children have turned out. It will not be the money you have made. It will not be the cars you have owned. It will not be the large house in which you live. The searing question that will cross your mind again and again will be, How well have my children done?

If the answer is that they have done very well, then your happiness will be complete. If they have done less than well, then no other satisfaction can compensate for your loss.

And so I plead with you tonight, my dear sisters. Sit down and quietly count the debits and the credits in your role as a mother. It is not too late. When all else fails, there is prayer and the promised help of the Lord to assist you in your trials. But do not delay. Start now, whether your child be six or 16.

God bless you, dear friends. Do not trade your birthright as a mother for some bauble of passing value. Let your first interest be in your home. The baby you hold in your arms will grow quickly as the sunrise and the sunset of the rushing days. I hope that when that occurs you will not be led to exclaim as did King Lear, “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child!” (King Lear, I, iv, 312). Rather, I hope that you will have every reason to be proud concerning your children, to have love for them, to have faith in them, to see them grow in righteousness and virtue before the Lord, to see them become useful and productive members of society. If with all you have done there is an occasional failure, you can still say, “At least I did the very best of which I was capable. I tried as hard as I knew how. I let nothing stand in the way of my role as a mother.” Failures will be few under such circumstances.

May the blessings of heaven rest upon you, my dear sisters. May you not trade a present thing of transient value for the greater good of sons and daughters, boys and girls, young men and women for whose upbringing you have an inescapable responsibility.

May the virtue of your children’s lives sanctify and hallow your old age. May you be led to exclaim with gratitude as did John, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 Jn. 1:4). For this I pray, and pray most earnestly, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen."

Here's the link if you want to read all of it. 

What a neat thing for me to read as I am watching my sweet friends grow up, marry & have children (some of them, their 4th & 5th children-Kel & Neane!). 

I asked Shanan her opinion on having children - the real truth & nothing but the truth: 

I have to be honest that some days I wonder if it is really worth all of the mess, screaming and yelling, patience, homework, whining, fighting, etc.  But when I really stop and think about the eternal perspective, or even just the role that our Heavenly Father wishes we play, it is so worth it.  

Parenthood is the hardest job EVER.  There is never an easy time.  Even when all seems well, there is something lurking in your mind to worry about.  It takes effort - both physical and emotional.  And often your views of yourself drop drastically as you wonder if you're the best mom you can be.  But the good thing is we all struggle.  And just as we struggle, we all revel in the amazing accomplishments we make as a family, as moms and as daughters of God.

Thankfully we have a partnership with our husbands and Heavenly Father.  We are never alone in this journey of motherhood.  Sometimes we may feel alone, but we aren't.  If we just stop and communicate with our Heavenly Father as we wish our children would communicate with us, we can feel so much better about our decisions and actions as moms.

Good luck in the next bit of time when you decide it's right to start a family.  It is an adventure.  It is fun and rewarding.  It is amazing that we can be so responsible.  It's the best when we see our children's accomplishments and know we helped to teach and lead and guide them.

Love you tons and wish you and all other mothers the best.
love,
Shan


I am grateful to all the superb examples of mothers I know out there: friends & family, my grandmothers, sisters-in-law, mother-in-law & especially my sweet sister & my fantastic mom who have all been such inspirations of faithful, hard-working mothers throughout my life. I am forever indebted to you for your struggles & for even "plugging along," as dad puts it. (Shoot, some days, that's all you can do.) Thanks for making the struggle worth it. I am so grateful today for mothers. I hope one day to be half the woman you guys are!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the beautiful tribute to motherhood ... what a wonderful surprise it was to read your sweet words when I randomly checked your blog today. Now let's hope no one comes to my office & see me crying all over the place.

I have no doubt, Katie, that one day soon you'll also be an amazing mother. It's been a pleasure watching you & Ginnie grow & mature into womanhood. I, too, second Shanan's comment when she said, "It's the best when we see our children's accomplishments and know we helped to teach and lead and guide them."

Love you bunches!!
Mom

Ginnie said...

Ah! Look how cute I was! I think Cameron looks a little like me here.

Thanks for posting this. Almost made me cry (dumb hormones!).

It's really fun for me, especially today, to think back over the past two years and how much Cameron, Chad, and I have all changed so much. And it's definitely been for the better (even if I'm more grouchy sometimes now than I used to be!).

You'll make a great mom, Kate. Don't worry so much about it. I know the things you do and teach your kids will be important and they will love being with you.

Love you.