Embracing motherhood!
Photo by: Meg in Oahu
As we celebrated Mother’s Day this year under these extraordinary circumstances, we are presented with the opportunity to not only treasure the mothers in our lives but to also appreciate and relate to motherhood in ways we’ve never done before. Especially for those of us who aren’t mothers ourselves!
So today, between the Zoom brunches and long calls to Mom, let’s take a moment to reflect on just some aspects of motherhood and how we all can embrace them this year.
Anticipation
Motherhood is full of anticipation, from waiting to see their baby’s face, eyes and feet for the first time, to anticipating each and every milestone that will come as their children grow, to discovering who those children will become in their lifetimes.
Motherhood can be a thrilling roller coaster of anticipating one amazing experience after another. And that’s something many of us can relate to right now as we anticipate the experiences that are coming soon. When this unprecedented “lockdown” ends it will seem as if we’ve been birthed into new lives! Sure some aspects will remain the same, but how we experience them will be completely different.
Right now, as we sit in our homes and backyards, on patios or beside windows, we’re anticipating the life that is coming and all that it will hold, made even more precious by this period of being still and waiting.
Firsts
Hand-in-hand with anticipation comes “firsts,” another thing mothers know all about. Because after all that anticipation there finally comes that first moment she actually sees her baby’s face or watches them take their first steps towards her, and so on through a lifetime of firsts that she’ll share in.
Many mothers will tell you that often these firsts are even better than you imagine they’ll be. That you can not fully grasp the unconditional love you’ll feel until your baby is placed into your arms or the joy you’ll experience seeing life through their eyes for their firsts.
We will soon be able to experience something similar as we return to those lives we’re anticipating filled with first dinners out, first visits to family and friends, first kisses of long-separated loves, and first trips abroad. Through our own eyes life will seem brand new, dazzling, and even those things once familiar will feel like magical “firsts.”
Photo by: Mariana in Lisbon
Nurturing
Motherhood is oftentimes synonymous with nurturing. It’s what many mothers do best. As their children grow they nurture them with attention, guidance, love, and wisdom. Some mothers will tell you that the mark of success in their role is seeing their babies grow into adults who have the tools they need to go out and navigate the challenging world.
As we’ve all been stuck at home during this time, many of us have found news ways or remembered the importance of nurturing ourselves. We’ve created yoga and meditation routines, danced around the house for fun, tried new recipes, gone for walks, read books, cleared out garages, and, of course, called Mom more often!
In fact, this new level of self-care would make Mom proud. And as we go back out into the world, we shouldn’t abandon these nurturing habits, but take them with us into our renewed lives, just as we take Mom’s lessons with us into adulthood.
Nature
Finally, many mothers feel a new sense of connection with the world around them after they have nurtured and cared for children of their own. There is an understanding of the mother cat looking for a place to birth her kittens, a kinship with the large tree shadowing its tender saplings, and an empathy for Mother Earth as she struggles to provide for so many creatures amidst so many challenges.
During our isolation many mothers have had to work harder, not only maintaining careers remotely, but suddenly homeschooling and keeping everyone in the family sane. Likewise, while we humans have been staying home, Mother Nature has been working doubly hard as well, regenerating the ozone and habitats, growing sustenance for us, and protecting animals given a new lease on space and life, like the jellyfish swimming the canals of Venice or the coyotes strolling empty San Francisco streets.
So, as we return to life outside of our homes, let’s not forget our moms nor Mother Nature, now that we are so much more aware of how much each gives us. Keep planting gardens, going for walks, and consuming less. And of course, keep calling Mom!
However you embrace and celebrate motherhood in Mother’s Day, we’re here to help. Focused on anticipation and firsts, then book one of our discounted photoshoots to use wherever that first trip takes you, whenever the time comes! Or feeling the nurturing and natural aspects of motherhood more, then try one of our virtual photoshoots which leaves zero carbon footprints and just treasured memories!
Photo by: Valerie in Miami