The Invisible Mother

I have over a thousand unread emails in my inbox. I do not log on to my email by the computer very often unless I really need to and I do not like reading them from my phone. So a lot of them go unread. However, I was checking my email to see if Merci's soccer coach sent any information out and saw an email my mother-in-law sent. The title "The Invisible Mother" caught my attention because I can relate. I opened it up and began reading. It was a very touching email. It spoke of a mother who, over the time of raising her kids, began to feel invisible to everyone. She merely felt like a woman who sacrificed so many things for her family being a mother and it all went unnoticed and unappreciated. A friend gave her a book about the cathedrals built in Europe. The little book changed her entire views. The people who dedicated their lives to build the cathedrals made a tremendous sacrifice for something they would not even see the end results of. One of the most touching things I took from the email is when she concluded "the passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything." This is true about mothers as well. There are days I am sure my husband comes home and probably thinks to himself "wow, what did she do today?" If he only knew...

Being a mother is one of the hardest jobs. As clique as it may sound, it is very true. There are days I am sure it would be easier to put the kids in daycare and head to a 9-5 job. But I want to raise my kids and we are blessed enough for me to be able to stay home with them. I love being able to watch them grow and knowing what is going on in their lives. So as some days it may appear I am "griping" a lot, it is because it is a very stressful adventure. It isn't only about making sure they get their homework done and are at school on time, it is about making sure they are being raised so they can function as adults in a society that is so harsh. It is about making sure the values you want them to have are implemented on a daily basis so they never forget. Because once they are out on their own, their is very little you can do to change your mind about how you want them to be. It is teaching them about their faith and how turning away from God will only bring them hardship. It is teaching them about the consequences of their actions and how much they can affect their lives. It is teaching them about waiting to have sex for when they are married and not to do drugs, and having to do that without being so harsh about it that they want to rebel and do it anyways. Being a mother is hard. A lot falls on our shoulders. A lot. And I am not at all saying it isn't hard for fathers. I know it must be extremely stressful to have to worry about financially supporting a family and making sure your family doesn't go without they need. I have a tremendous amount of respect for my husband and the sacrifices he has made, not only for us, but for our country. I know him better than anyone else and I can honestly say he is an amazing man. At the end of the day we both want the same things, to be appreciated and recognized. I am certain God sees what I am trying to do for my kids and I am certain as long as I keep praying and believing he will help me achieve what I need to. And if my kids turn out to be respectable people and serve our amazing God, I will feel that I accomplished what I need to in life. And if it goes unnoticed to others, I know God has seen the sacrifices I have made and he will always appreciate me.

The last thing she says that I found point on is this "No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, no Cub Scout meeting, no last minute errand is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become". (These were her thoughts of what God would say to her)

I think after reading this email, I should make an effort to open more of the unread ones.