With the theme of the month as love and friendship, this final blog for the month is about friendship.
So many of the moms I’ve interviewed talk about the importance of their tribe. That tribe can be family (think extended relatives helping out, not only the core family unit), friends, neighbors, colleagues, nannies, babysitters, and anyone in your support network. They are the people we turn to, whether for help when things come up, for advice, for moral support, for a cheerleader to celebrate our successes, and so much more.
There are times when, as moms, we feel like we’re going through something unique when we have hard moments. That’s largely because we don’t usually talk about the challenges of motherhood. And that can create self-doubt in those tough moments. Does it make us feel weak to share our challenges? Are we doing something wrong that no one else seems to be going through because no one has mentioned when they’re going through the same thing? Is something going on with our kids since no one else seems to be dealing with the same issues?
It only seems to get harder in a world with social media. When we log onto Facebook, we usually see the happy moments or the fun family pictures, or see the perfect photo on the holiday cards. Our not-so-good moments can make us feel very alone. I always say that life is what happens between the pictures – those moments you don’t usually see in photos. A few years ago a friend sent holiday cards with the perfect picture on the front and the “moment before” on the back with at least one child in tears (maybe even two). It was refreshing and, honestly, really cute. Very relatable too.
And since we don’t always share the unhappy moments with the world in general, it’s really important that we share with our tribe and get the support we need. To some extent that requires that we allow ourselves to be vulnerable at moments, which can be hard for some (me included). We all have our hard moments – monumental meltdowns, moments of extreme child independence, family illness, marital challenges, and so much more. It’s much easier, though, to deal with these really hard things and even the day-to-day hiccups, when we have a tribe to turn to.
I’m thankful for my tribe – you know who you are!! In life in general and in gathering information to write a book, I couldn’t make it happen without your help and support.
