THE SIMPLE LIFE

FRIENDS

Just got off the phone in a crazy-long conversation. You know what I love (besides good conversations)? Good friends. I love that fact that I have such awesome friendships with whom you can turn to no matter what, share no matter what and you just KNOW that you'll always be there for each other. And while I wish I was with all of you, because there's a certain closeness that only comes with frequency & proximity, I also appreciate the fundamental level of care that transcends both time & distance. I look at all the people I know and I am so blessed because I feel this unspoken level of closeness with so many of you. *hug* *tear* Hopefully, you'd feel the same way about me too. =)

I was asked today what God was revealing to me. I'd like to add that I am so thankful for all of you (and I'm pretty sure I know who visits this site!)

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MOTHERHOOD

On a completely different note. Something that's been on my mind recently was motherhood. Not that I am ready for this by any means, but in some of the readings that I've been doing and people I've been observing, this has come up a lot lately for some reason.

Perhaps because I'm always watching out for qualities that I could admire in people (especially women) and perhaps learn from. I've been reading about this mother who took an entire weekend retreat to just pray for her son and then wrote out very specific goals on how to raise him. I think that's a pretty amazing thing for someone to do for another individual, especially a woman for her child. I guess it's cuz I usually used to seeing a harried mother instead of a peaceful one.

Sometimes I think we neglect the impact parents have on their kids. I am still taken aback when I come across a certain situation and I recall what my parents would say. After all these years of learning to 'think on my own', they still have a huge impression on what I contemplate and how I act. At times this is good and other times it is not so good. As parents, that is a great responsibility - one that I think we don't consider nearly as much as it warrants.

This idea came up when I was reading about voting in the early 1900's. How they didn't believe that women needed to vote because of their ability to influence their family. That eventually, everyone would vote along the same lines as the mother. Such was the power of a woman over the following generations - based on how they raised them.

I had never thought of a mother's role in this manner and I'm not at all saying that I agree wholeheartedly with the above thoughts. Obviously if this were the case, there really is no need for women to vote. But I think, as with most things that don't sit well with me, there's a nugget of truth in that statement. That a mother's influence on her family is far greater than she potentially realizes and it's important to acknowledge this early on because it's something we will eventually be held accountable to. All the more reason to ask for guidence - it's certainly not something I can claim that to do on my own.

Oh, and not to belittle the father's role in raising a family...but I can only write things from my perspective and it's limited at that! =P