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This is a post from four years ago. It’s been on my mind a lot this week, so I’m repeating it here.
This weekend, we celebrate Mother’s Day. It’s not my favorite day because most of mine have not gone well.
Instead of whining about my issues with this day, I want to encourage you to notice the women who get sidelined or find it hard to enjoy this day.
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.
Psalm 68:5
As you remember your mother, wife, grandparents, or any other women in your life who answer to “Mom” please try to share a kind thought or blessing with any you know who are:
Childless: Many women want children and can’t have them. This can be a tough day for them.
Single Moms: Most children learn to celebrate Mother’s Day through their fathers. Without a father to guide them, children of single moms don’t always recognize the significance of this day.
Military Wives: These women have the same problem as single parents if their husbands are deployed.
Stepmothers: They get a bad wrap thanks to fairy tales. Any woman who willingly marries a man with children does so with plans to embrace the lives of those children. That doesn’t mean those children remember them on Mother’s Day.
Grandmothers Raising Grandchildren: Most of them did not sign up for this. They’ve already parented one generation of children and were not anticipating doing it again.
Mothers Who Have Lost Their Children: I can’t begin to imagine the pain they experience.
Mothers Whose Children Don’t Contact Them: Estrangement from a child hurts. This is that little baby they carried and doted on.
Mothers Whose Children Live Too Far Away: They tend to understand the problems brought on by distance, but it still makes for a lonely Mother’s Day.
Women Who Have Lost Their Mothers: It’s been four years since I lost my mom and shopping for Mother’s Day cards is bittersweet. I, always, find the perfect one for her.
Single Dads: Single dads play the part of mom, they have no choice.
Widowers: Whether their children remain at home or are grown, they miss the woman they used to honor on this day.
I’m sure there are others who belong on this list. Find them and wish them a good day. If you have time or the means, treat them to lunch or a mani-pedi or give them a break from the kids for a few hours. They will appreciate it more than you know.
A version of this post originally ran on May 5, 2017.
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