Motherly Advice

In respect of Mother's Day having been on Sunday (yes, I know I'm a little behind on this, we had a lot going on last week), anyways, as I was saying, in respect of Mother's Day I want to share some words of wisdom that my amazing mom always told me, and that has served me very well in my lifetime.



Words of Wisdom #1: "You have to be a friend to have friends."
I used to give my students sayings like this and ask them to explain it in their own words and tell me if they agreed with it or not for daily journals, and I always started the year out with this one. But I was surprised by some of their interpretations of this saying, thinking that they had to be someone they weren't to please others or earn their friendship. So I always had to explain to them what my mother meant by it, and why it meant so much to me. You see, I was kind of a shy kid growing up, and still can be at times, and I would often complain that I didn't have any friends. My mom would explain to me that because I was so standoffish (I don't really know if that's a word, but I use it frequently, so in my dictionary it is), others interpreted my behavior as being stuck up. I was surprised by this, because I definitely didn't feel that way, so she taught me that I had to be friendly to others and show them that I was interested in them, so that we could strike up a friendship. It sounds really easy, if you're like my mom or sister, but for me, it was a daunting task. But as I've gotten older and followed her advice, I've learned how right she is. I guess another way of explaining her advice is, "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care." The art of making friends comes in selflessness and pure joy in learning about others. As a result of my mom's advice, I have gained many friends in my lifetime, and am so thankful for them!

Words of Wisdom #2: "Get your chores done first, and then you'll have the rest of the day to do whatever you please."
Believe it or not, when I was younger, I was a huge procrastinator. I hated doing book reports or school projects and would put them off for as long as I could. I realize now that I put things off that I felt like I wouldn't be successful at or that I had never tried before and feared I wouldn't be good at, and I often catch myself doing that now as an adult. But my mom was not a fan of my procrastination, mainly because it always resulted in me dissolving into tears or being up half the night literally worried sick over it, and mom holding my hair back and patting my back. So mom made a rule that we always had to get our chores done first, and then the rest of the day was mine to spend how I chose (which was often with a book in hand!). Now as an adult with an endless "to-do" list it seems, I am so thankful that my mom made me learn to get my chores done first, so that I had something to look forward to when they were done. Knowing that I can sit down and read a book or watch a movie after a hard day's work makes me work much faster, and then I rest comfortably knowing nothing is still hanging over my head to be done later.

Words of Wisdom #3: "Life is what you choose to make it, regardless of your past."
I can't stand whining, complaining or people making excuses! This pet-peeve was often tested as a high school teacher. But I truly can't stand when people choose not take responsibility for their actions and try to blame others. My parents both came from difficult backgrounds, but they chose to make their own lives better, just like my grandparents before them. My mom and dad have lots of reasons why they shouldn't be good parents or have a strong marriage, but they chose to make improvements in those areas of their lives, and rise above what they were raised in. Everyone faces hardships and troubles, and sometimes there's nothing you can do to fix those things, but you can choose how you face it. You can whine and complain about it, but that usually just makes things worse, so my mom always would say, "Just get up and shake it off and keep going."

My mom is an incredible woman. She may not be perfect, but I think she's as close to it as possible, and I'm so thankfu that God blessed me by giving me such a strong and wise woman to look up to and learn from. She loves my sister and I unconditionally, and she sees the best in us. She encourages us, and sometimes admonishes us. She listens, and she wipes our tears. My mom is my best friend and the one I turn to, when I need advice or want someone to celebrate with me. She's the one I look up to, and hope to be like one day. I don't know if I'll ever be as good of a mom as she is, but I'm certainly going to try, and I'm so thankful to have her example to follow! I love my mom so much!