“It’s not just your life anymore”, I always hear this from moms but I’ve never understood it until I had the honor of living one of the most overwhelming yet exhausting experiences ever.
Recently one of my friends asked me to babysit her two kids for one day. Of course I said yes, believing it will be easy since her kids already love me and I adore them back. And it’s just one day so how hard could it be?! Although this day I spent was nothing compared to parenthood, it was very hard, challenging, inspiring and I learned a lot from it. Here’s what I’ve learned from my experience of motherhood:
I’ve realized that…
1) I cannot control everything and I should accept that there are things beyond my control. No matter how much I wish I could be in charge of everything and do everything my way, this will never happen. I learned to let go and that it’s fine if not everyone does things my way, so enjoy life! Enjoy the chaos!
2) It’s not just about me anymore; being selfish is not an option. Before, I thought it was ok to act like my entire life revolves around me, however there’s more in life than just me and my priorities changed when I felt someone else depend on me. That experience has been transformative and has made me a better person.
3) It’s ok to ask for help. As they say “it takes a village to raise a child”; I now believe in this old adage and cannot imagine raising children without the help and support of family and friends.
4) I should never underestimate moms’ capabilities. Moms do magic. From laundry, dishes, preparing meals, all of the housework to taking care of the kids…moms can do magic indeed.
5) There’s no such thing as perfection. I’ve learned that things will never be “perfect”. Things can be messy, nice, unforgettable and sometimes awful but always far from perfect.
6) We should all appreciate our moms more. No matter how old we get, we will still need our moms and we should appreciate all of the things they did and are still doing for us. I now understand they would do absolutely everything to make us happy.
So to all moms on their day from someone who walked for just a few hours in your shoes: you are awesome; you are strong; and you are more powerful than you know.
Find Hadeer Moustafa on Instagram @hadeermostafa