‘A mother will hold a child’s hands for a while but the heart forever’
With children (from left) Joji, Jenny, Peewee, Jhondi and Jimmy
What is a mother? The dictionary describes a mother as a woman who has borne a child or the origin or source of something like a mother plant.
Mother means selfless devotion, limitless sacrifices and love that passes understanding. “A woman who has compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience is a mother. She can forgive as the Lord forgave us and above all these virtues is the love that binds them together.” (Romans:13:14)
Why is so much attention given to mothers? Mothers are beyond description and praises. They are the soul of the family, the tie that binds everything in that close-knit circle of lives. They direct and control the ins and outs of the members of the family. Proverbs 31:25 describes a mother as “clothed with strength and dignity. She can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed.”
Although mothers abound in the world, no two are alike. They differ in the way they love their children and the way they raise them. Poet Helen Jackson says the mother “who creates and sustains a home and under whose hands children grow up to be strong and pure men and women, is a creator second only to God.”
What does a mother do to deserve such accolades? A mother’s work is never done, from the time she opens her eyes to the time she closes them. Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt extolled the mother by saying that “no ordinary work done by a man is either hard or as responsible as the work of a mother who is bringing up a family of small children…..for upon her time and strength demands are made not only every hour of the day but often every hour of the night.”
She cooks, she cleans, she washes their clothes, she teaches her children, she plays with them, she is a supermom doing all kinds of things for her family; like she’s ready to fight the evils of the world for her children and she will never stop hoping, helping or believing that her child is the best there is. Ask any mother if this is not true.
What kind of love does a mother have? A mother’s love radiates like a star in heaven. “A mother’s love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible,” says author Marion Garrety.
A mother’s love is the kind that gives her the courage to fight for her children to death if needs be. She will stand up for their right, get on her knees to beg for something her child might be needing, and shout to high heavens if she is right. A mother will hold her child’s hands for a while but the heart forever. A mother is one who will sacrifice herself for the good of her children. If there are only four pieces of pie for five, she gladly announces that she does not like pies anyway. She will give way to her children to have new clothes even if she needs them badly. A mother will give up her right to personal freedom to care for her baby. She will give up late nights or no nights at all just so she can be with her child. In the long run, mothers are like antiques, they increase in value as years go by. A mother can also be compared to a flower, it blooms and never fades until she passes to eternity.
Let me end by quoting novelist Paula Fox, who said: “A mother’s life is like a hymn of praise to the Lord; not only in the way she speaks (her words and tone of voice) but also in the way she serves others, because she gives glory to the Lord.”
Happy Mother’s Day to all.
Lumen Castaneda, a public school teacher for more than 20 years, is the president of the Association of Fil-am Teachers of America founded in 1989. She has five children.
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