Inventions: Giving the Gift of Quality Time to Families

photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net  

Mother's Day is upon us heavier than ever before.  Social media is constantly putting unnecessary pressure on mothers by pitting perfection against reality every time a "friend" posts a picture of a perfect meal, a family photo in a staged location, or scripts an ego stroking announcement of one's ordinary accomplishment.  For example:  Snuck a 15 minute nap and a mini dark chocolate candy bar while the hubby read The Hungry Little Caterpillar to our precious little ones!  Thanks Babe, I'm such a lucky lady! 

Yawn.

I wish.

That stuff gets stuck in our subconscious and whether we like it or not we compare who we are ~ to who they are...and who we used to be ~ to who we wish we could be...and our mother ~ to ourselves as a mother... and celebrity mothers ~ to mothers we know that look like celebrities...and...

And while we're all wrapped up in meeting a glowing screens, unattainable expectations, that would be more accurately described as comparing-induced hallucinations, we've forgotten that our time and love is what truly matters to our children.  Not whether or not it's favorably documented.    

Really?  Really.       

Yes, motherhood has been mainstreamed.  But in the home, motherhood is still about being a tangible rock for children who's young hearts are as innocent as an apple blossom.

When they get their feelings hurt and their tears need dried, it's the mother who wipes them away with her tender kisses.

When they cross a developmental milestone, it's the mother's heart that swells until it bursts with shouts of praise and hugs of joy.

When they're sick as dogs, it's the mother's hand that cools their forehead and rubs their back.

When their belly growls, it's the mother that started dinner an hour ago in anticipation of their needs.

When they wet the bed, it's the mother that helps them peel off the shrink wrapped pajamas and warms their wrinkled skin in a bubble bath.

And when everything is going haywire, and the kids are being rotten, and the house is a wreck, it's the mother that somehow manages to get everything back on coarse.

Could you imagine doing this 150 years ago?  Would you have had enough time?  What type of daily chores would have gotten in the way of spending time with and caring for your children?  Would they "learn how to fend for themselves", so that you could tend the livestock and a garden that was the size of a few football fields?   

What you may not realize is that, now more than ever, we are spending larger amounts of quality time with our kids even though life seemed simpler back then.  Thanks to inventions like the dishwasher, washer and dryer, automobile, indoor plumbing, electricity, and the convenience of grocery stores and restaurants, our main job as a mother today is to be with our children.  Back 150 years ago, a house wife labored hard and long hours or they didn't eat.  When somebody asked, "Where's Jimmy?", he could have been a.n.y.w.h.e.r.e.  In the barn, in the woods, asleep in a haystack, at the creek, at the neighbors, in the fields, etc.  And he was probably a ripe ol' age of 5.  Hence the dinner bell.                

So when you get home from work and flick the lights on, run the dishwasher, brew a cup of coffee, put a load of clothes in the wash, and throw a casserole in the oven, take a moment to imagine how long all those chores would have taken a mother 150 years ago.  Then look at your children and imagine them fending for themselves while you were busy.  Thanks to modern day inventions you have all the time in the world to do the best job in the world, be a mom.  And the only opinions that matter are the children's.

Happy Mother's Day