Yesterday I read a beautiful post about a mother learning from her child, trusting her intuition and building her relationship with her new baby. Motherhood is not only a change of role but a shift in identity and this shift isn’t always easy. In some places, communities and in periods of history Motherhood has been a role forces on women who do not want it, it has been a barrier for women exploring other aspects of themselves, in other places and times it has been a role which is not fully supported. In many countries around the world women face dangerous births, insufficient maternity leave and breast feeding spaces, a lack of access to family planning and material resources to care for their infants. Where we have sufficient material wellbeing we can have insufficient networks of support, safe places to play, connect with other parents and kindly ears when we need them.
Motherhood is a state often fearer or idealised, but today can be a day for seeing the whole of what motherhood is – a valiant attempt to care, as best as we can, for a vulnerable beings dependant on us. Let’s support mothers, listen to their needs, their difficulties, their dreams and build a world that has capacity to care for all and be moved by the smallest amongst us.
