On 6 May, 2012, imagine my surprise when I read the following message in an email, ‘You are our ONE and ONLY lucky winner for our “Mum’s the Best†contest.’
A few weeks back, I had received an email inviting me to submit an entry for the competition.
Normally, I would have deleted the ‘spam mail’ if the vendor had not asked me for opinions about my mother.
I had to take the opportunity to commend a lady, without whom I won’t be alive and become the person I am today.
I cannot say enough and do enough to express my gratitude, thankfulness and appreciation to my mother.
I decided not to collect the prize.
For me, being able to say thank you to my mother publicly was already a huge bonus.
More importantly, when the prize is given to another person, I hope he/she will be more encouraged to step up his/her love for his/her mother.
He/She will inspire others to become more thankful for their mothers and grandmothers. They deserve all our appreciation.
Who can understand what a woman has to go through to be a mother?
Being a mother is not an easy task.
Yet, mothers have to literally pour out their heart, soul and spirit to fulfill their role and responsibilities.
They perform their duties to the best of their abilities and with whatever little that they have.
It’s a role that they cannot run away from and they carry the emotional and other obligations throughout their life.
If it’s a job, it’s the lowest paid hard work.
It’s a job that requires them to be on a a standby mode to fulfill needs – on-demand and on a 24/7 basis.
What’s more, motherhood is not a part of any curriculum in schools.
There is no course, on-the-job training, or personal coaching and guidance to prepare them for the important role of a being a mother.
After childbirth, mothers serve ‘bosses’ who cannot express their appreciation adequately.
When they are matured enough, they are often so caught up with their studies and work that they don’t do or say enough to convey their gratitude to their mothers.
Still, mothers continue their care and contributions without any expectations. They do not seek any recognition or reward.
Until today, mothers are oftentimes born to play on an un-level playing field. They face many disadvantages throughout their lives.
All over the world, there are still many stereotypes about women’s place in society.
Women have to work harder to prove their worth and find their place under the organizational sun.
In the household, women are still expected to do most of the work of looking after the family. They have to juggle their work and personal time with their motherly role of looking after the children.
Sometimes, they have to be full-time mothers and full-time workers at the same time. It is a class act that only mothers can do.
She has to carry the baby in her womb for three trimesters, all this while with a sense of joyful expectation. Yet, lurking in the corner of her mind are all kinds of anxieties and concerns.
Labour pain is one of the worst pains in life. Mothers have to suffer through it to bring forth one of her own.
That is but only the first part of an exciting and at times heart-wrenching journey.
In bringing up children, mothers have to put in all of their being. They cannot detach any part of their life from fulfilling their maternal care and concerns.
As a result, they can enjoy the peak of many emotional experiences. They may also have to endure the pits of many emotionally draining exercises.
In performing their duties, mothers have to put on many hats, including taking on many challenging roles.
They have to, at the same time, be a leader, teacher, mentor, coach, counsellor, cheer leader, and friend.
Very often, they have to choose between two diametrically different roles or even combine them together.
They need to lead the children on the right path and at times follow them through meandering tracks so that they can learn the art and skill of independence and interdependence.
Mothers have to be a disciplinarian and correct the children. They also have to be a counsellor and a friend to stroke them after their failures and strengthen them so that they can fly again.
They have to protect their children. At the same time, they have to take risks so that the children can move out of their comfort zones and learn from the hard knocks of life.
Mothers have to toggle between their roles as trainers and students.
Yes, if they do not know how to follow and learn from their children, they cannot improve their mothering skills and build bridges and bond with them.
Do mothers make mistakes?
Of course they do. To state the obvious, all of us make mistakes.
It’s sad to see people focusing on the downsides of their mothers. They choose to remember unpleasant experiences with and even dwell on them.
Truth be told, the mistakes that our mothers make can help us become more of a human. We can learn to be more empathetic to others and have more sympathy for their plights in life.
We can leverage on negative experiences and learn to have more love, kindness and compassion.
Instead of being a pitfall, they can be a platform to help us become a stronger, better and more resilient person.
Through the goodness of our mother’s love, we can catch a glimpse of the immeasurable love of our Creator.
A true mother’s love is unconditional. It will never falter and is forever.
Please have a FUNtastic Mother’s Day celebration.
There’s nothing we can ever do that can express enough of our gratitude and thankfulness to them.
Mothers and grandmothers deserve all our love and appreciation.
Go4It!
I hope this message will find a place in your heart.
By the way, I have also recorded other reflections.
Visit my Inspiration blog at http://liewinspiration.
For my opinions on current affairs, please visit my Transformation blog at http://hsrpatrickliew.
Please visit my website, www.patrickliew.net
Please read my reflections and continue to teach me.
Life is FUNtastic!
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