Reflections about Mother's Day

As Mother's Day was celebrated today, I was thankful for my own mother, my mother-in-law, and also for being a mother to four precious souls, and one soul who I will see someday in Heaven.  I've been abundantly blessed. 

But, also on this Mother's Day (and every Mother's Day), I think of those who are not mothers....not by choice, but because of expectations beyond their control.  My heart hurts for them as they long to hold a child in their arms.  A Facebook friend posted the following quote.  It describes how those longing to be a mother may feel.  I can't totally understand their pain, but I can empathize with their desire to have a child.

"The English language lacks the words to mourn an absence...for someone who was never there at all, we are wordless to capture that particular emptiness. For those who deeply want children and are denied them, those missing babies hover like silent, ephemeral shadows over their lives. Who can describe the feel of a tiny hand that is never held?"  --Laura Bush, Spoken from the Heart
 
Also, on this Mother's Day, I thought of the children who live at Tipton Home (where my husband works) or other places where children live - but not with their biological or adopted families.  They are somewhere they may not want to be.  They are with people who love and care for them, but they may not realize it - at least not yet.  They may miss their "real" moms and dads...or maybe they don't....because those thoughts bring back memories of abuse or neglect.  Either way, Mother's Day, is most likely filled with lots of emotions.
 
One teenage boy recently made this statement to my husband as he was asked about his mom. "I ain't got no good momma.  She don't care about us."  How did Mother's Day make him feel today?  My heart aches for him and his brother - as well as so many others in his same situation.
 
And then, I think of those who have lost loved ones close to Mother's Day.  My grandma (my mom's mom) died the day after Mother's Day twenty years ago.  It still makes me sad!  A friend lost her son the day before Mother's Day several years ago.  A young man lost his life today as the result of a car accident.  I don't know him, but several friends are friends of his and his family.  Instead of his mother celebrating Mother's Day with him, she faced possibly the worst day of her life.  Tragic and heart-breaking.
 
Sometimes we forget the feelings of others as we go about our celebrations.  It's not that we should neglect our mothers or our children/families neglect us, but we should consider the feelings of others.  Our celebrations and festive times can bring pain and sorrow to the hearts and minds of others....not just at Mother's Day, but many of our special holidays.
 
Take the time to write a note to someone who may be sad or lonely.  Take the time to ask how someone is feeling or how they are coping.  Comfort those who are grieving.  Remember that the grieving process takes time - a long time for many.  Holidays sometimes bring those grieving emotions back to the surface and it may take time to get back to feeling "normal" again.
 
Be an encourager to someone this week.  You'll make their day brighter, but yours will be made brighter, as well.
 

Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  Galatians 6:2

 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4