this upcoming sunday is a happy day for a lot of women i know. breakfast in bed, no chores, flowers, handmade cards. i never want to dismiss the awesomeness of mothers and that they get a day of extra-special love for all their hard work day in and day out. for me, with 5 kids, i always get some more-than-usual-sweetness and am so grateful for it; but both jose’s mom and my mom live close so we are caring for them too. this year to top if it off, it’s also jose’s birthday so it’s extra crazy.
i also know that this sunday can be a really hard day for so many women (and men, too; sometimes it’s easy to forget they are affected in a few of these areas, too).
in the same vein as when christmas is hard and when easter is hard, i wanted to take a little time to acknowledge the pain and reality and weirdness of this sunday for so many.
for those of you who:
suffered the devastating loss of a child
lost your mother and ache for her touch, her hug, her voice, her comfort.
were neglected or abandoned or abused by your mother and ache for the touch, hug, voice and comfort of the mom you dreamed of.
know intellectually there are lots of ways to mother but it definitely doesn’t feel like enough.
know the emptiness and ache of miscarriages.
desperately long for a child but have been unable to have one.
desperately long for not just a child but a partner to make one with.
are reminded of the trauma and drama and pain of a past abortion.
are remembering the child that you placed for adoption who you ache-for and dream-for and wonder-about.
are yet-again reminded of the collateral damage of divorce and what it feels like to mother alone.
have broken relationship with your children and are up-all-night-worrying-about-them-still or wish-they-would-call or are on-your-knees-daily-praying-for-sobriety-or-healing-or-hope for struggling daughters and sons.
have broken relationship with your mother and wish she’d know how much you want things to be better.
can’t stand to be on facebook or at churches-where-all-the-moms-stand-up or anywhere else that reminds you of your loss.
wish you could skip over this day completely.
feel needy, desperate, lonely, confused, sad, angry, empty, weird, off, weepy this mother’s day.
i just wanted to say that even though i don’t know exactly what you’re feeling, i know this: your loss is real and your ache isn’t crazy.
i am quite sure a handmade card won’t do much, but i made one anyway.
thinking of you this weekend, praying for peace and hope as you grieve and feel whatever you need to feel this mother’s day.
your loss is real and your ache isn’t crazy.