For those who have or who have had good mothers, Mother’s Day is a wonderful time . Thus, it is not necessary to gild the lily by singing the praises of motherhood. That said, for those who have recently lost their moms or for those who associate absence, neglect or other kinds of emotional trauma with their mothers, this holiday can be painful. When Mothers Day Hurts | Psychology Today
My concern is that we are mindful of the fact that, as it is with almost all holidays, Mother’s Day means different things to different people depending on each person’s individual experience.
Apart from being aware of the fact that not everyone is excited about celebrating Mother’s Day, I wanted to share two thoughts.
1) For those who never had good mothers or who have lost their moms,
it is never too late to experience acceptance, love and support from wise older women. Just because you weren’t fortunate enough to have it as a kid, doesn’t mean that you can’t find it now. To find it, however, you have to be able to recognize opportunities when they arise and to be open to accepting the love from those who offer their empathy. Mother’s Day for those whose mom’s weren’t so hot | Pastoral Counseling Syracuse NY (revmichaelheath.com)
2) For those of you women who are older,
realize that there are many men and women out there who still need understanding and nurturing. Understand that whether you had a good mother or not, you can extend a mother’s love to others who are in need, now. The fundamental virtues that we celebrate on Mother’s Day do not have expiration dates and are not only available from family members. A mother’s love does not have to ,literally , come from one’s own mother.
If today is a down day for you or someone you know , think of how you might connect with someone. You never know how taking a risk to reach out could make a big difference in your life or the life of someone else.
Rev, Michael Heath, LMHC, Fellow AAPC 5 9 2012
Image attribution: https://unsplash.com/@janinekrob
