Mother's Day

Mother's Day. Hm.

Being a man, I can't possibly imagine what hardships a mother faces. Having a human being grow inside of you, giving birth, raising a child, having such a strong link to your child... it's all foreign to me, and always will be.

I do know what it's like to have a mother, though, and mothers are pretty great. Always there for you. When the father figure tries to whip you into shape, and make you a better person, your mom is always there to comfort you and make you feel good about yourself.

At least, this is what's supposed to happen. Being human, mothers make mistakes, their personality flaws break through, and they often damage their kids for life in one way or another. Parenting: the impossible job. The job you're destined to fail at, despite being the one job you are absolutely not allowed to fail at. This is all part of the puzzle, though. Growing up, you at first love your parents, and then hate them, and then, as you grow into an adult yourself, forgive them for being human beings that make mistakes.

Then there are rotten people who have children. Legitimately bad people. I hesitate to call them mothers, because outside of the primal need to preserve their child, if they even have that, they don't care about their children at all. Unworthy of the moniker of "mother", for sure. I feel bad for anyone who suffered abuse, lack of care, or any other failure to show love from their biological mother. I know people with rotten "mothers". I do not envy them. Everyone deserves a loving mother. Everyone. On that same note, however, I greatly respect these same people who grew up without this essential human need for a mother figure and still came out alright, although I still would not wish the experience on anyone.

Why on earth would I mention something so downright awful in a post celebrating Mother's Day? Because it isn't fair to those who didn't have a mother there for them to go on about how great all mothers are. It would be like saying, "I know. Nobody was there for you. Whatever, man." Acknowledgement goes a long way when it comes to poverty, and lacking a mother is real poverty of the soul. The real point is that the heart of what a mother is extends far beyond simply who gave birth to you. While it's great if that does work out, a real mother is someone who looks out for you - biologically related or not. I feel as if today celebrates all real mothers. And the fact that some people didn't have that in their life is even greater cause to celebrate the good souls who did fulfill this role.

A mother, at her core, is a caring, nurturing, noble soul, one who has a job so intricate and so life consuming that I can't help but label it as one of the most respectable jobs in the world. And in our society, people often work paying jobs in addition to the gigantic responsibility of motherhood, which is an admirable feat.

Moms everywhere deserve a huge medal. They carry an impossible cross, but one that must be carried, and one that bears fruit like no other. Every human being on earth owes their life to their mother, in one way or another.

Happy Mother's Day.