To all the mothers I know:
Thank you for your examples, whatever they have been. I have watched and learned, and I value the influence you all have had on my life and mothering.
Thank you for showing me new ways to fill this ancient role in a day when the entire world seems stacked against goodness, gentleness, and love unfeigned.
Thank you for reminding me what's really important. For reminding me what family truly is, and should be.
Thank you for sharing bits and pieces of your lives, your time, and your laughter.
And please remember: on this day when ideal mothers are being held up for praise, when ideal motherhood is talked over and painted onto each one of us, know that I break down, lose my patience and my temper, and cry over the fear that I'll cripple my children's ability to succeed in our crazy world, and their own families, some day. You're not alone. Neither am I.
And to my own mother:
With each day, each minute, that goes by, I marvel anew at how you managed it all. I am so grateful for your faith, your strength, and your quiet determination to follow the path God laid out for you. Thank you for loving Dad, the boys, and I, and for being so kind and gentle about it. Thank you for teaching me so many basic, important principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and for modeling them every day. Thank you for making the house on the ranch bright and attractive, and for working so hard to take such good care of all of us.
I don't know how you did it. And I'm so glad you did. I love you.
