What I Do as a Mom Matters

I have had many times in my mothering where I have wondered, “Am I making a difference with my life?” All I feel I do is clean, correct, carpool and clean some more.  I want my life to count and to know that my efforts are not in vain.  However, in society’s eyes I do not rank very high.  I do not have a career that brings in money or success.  I am not out saving the world.  I am and have been a stay at home mom for 20 years.  During those years, I had reality checks to help me stay focused on the task ahead.  My first one came when my first baby, Jenny, was about 8 months old.  We had been at the mall shopping and I passed a pet store.  I thought she would like to see the animals so I pushed her stroller in.  As she caught a glimpse of the fish in the tank, her face lit up with excitement.  She giggled and reached out her hand trying to grasp the fish behind the tank.  Then it hit me, this was the first time she ever saw a fish.  I know it may sound trivial but it hit me that Jenny came with a clean slate and I had a great part in what she was taught, what she experienced, and she was exposed to.  I, as her parent, had the greatest amount of influence anyone would ever have in molding her and making her into the person God planned her to be. What I did mattered in the life of my child.  As the years went on and I had more children I would revert back to thinking, ”Am I doing anything significant with my life?”  I watched as friends excelled in their jobs, bought bigger houses and cars, contributed to society.  I was still at home, raising my children.  At times I could not wait to get to the next stage thinking life would be better. When they were babies, I could not wait until they slept through the night.  When they were toddlers, I could not wait until they were out of diapers.  When they were preschoolers, I could not wait until they were able to entertain themselves.  When they were in Elementary school, I could not wait until they were more self-sufficient.  When they were teenagers, I could not wait for them to come back to reality and think clearly.  Why was I in such a hurry as if the next stage would bring more joy?   I should have  focused in enjoying the journey instead of rushing to the destination.  What helped me change my perspective?  God blessed us with two more children eight years after having my third.  It was like starting over for us and we had not planned it.  Yet it was the best thing that could have happened to us as a family.  I learned to enjoy the journey at each stage because I had seen how fast it had gone the first time.  Our two little boys, DJ and Josh helped me stop and enjoy life.  They love nature and marvel at God’s creation, especially the moving ones of any kind.   They show no fear, especially DJ.  I have touched and carried things I never thought I would as I look at the world through their curious eyes.  Last summer we spent a week at the beach, and the boys wanted to go swimming.  I told them to stay right in front of where I sat on the shore.  As time passed Josh came out for a snack, when I finished getting it for him I looked up to check on DJ and he was not there.  My eyes searched up and down the beach and that is when I spotted him.  He was playing the water just as he had been earlier, only this time he was about 500 feet down the shoreline.  As I walked to get him, I noticed he had no clue he had drifted down the beach.  I called to him and he came running.  I said, “Son, you are not in front of me anymore, you need to keep your eyes on the shore”.  He said,” I did not know I was so far away, how did that happen?”  I told him when we do not pay attention the current takes us little by little away from where we need to be.   He returned to the water with a promise to keep focused on the shore.  As I sat back down, I realized that life could be the same way.  We can go through the motions of life and drift away from our purpose.  We need to constantly be checking our shoreline and focusing on what really matters in life before we end up drifting through life.  I committed to stay the course with my role as a mother that day and was thankful for yet another reminder of the importance of the job I have before me.  I have discovered there is a reward at the end of all this day in and day out of laboring.  My baby who loved the fish is now a married woman with two small girls of her own. What joy I feel to see my baby become a beautiful, godly woman.  She is becoming all God created her to be.  I cannot help but feel proud and grateful for having been able to play a role in shaping her into that woman.  Now I get to watch her raise her girls to do the same.  When she struggles with the same issues we all have as moms, I will be able to tell her with all certainty that it was worth every minute.  Just enjoy the journey and when life’s pull tries to cause you to drift,  keep your eyes focused on this shore that reminds us that what we do as moms matters!

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