Reflections on motherhood

I was recently challenged on something that I hold very dear, and, as usual, was unable to put my thoughts together coherently in order to really express my views. Oddly enough, it was about being a stay at home mom...something very close to my heart. In order that my thoughts may be more collected, I'm attempting to lay them out in a somewhat orderly fashion to prevent the Jackass feeling from reoccurring in the future...or at least with regard to this particular issue. Be it known that I am here describing the ideal, the hope, and the very best thing and am not taking into account that there are many good women who are compelled to work when their husbands are sick or die. This is not about that sort of thing.

 Though I have no children, I feel very strongly that it is the parents who ought to raise their children, and if someone else has them for 40+ waking hours every week, that is not happening. So many people argue, "but he still knows who his mama is, and he hugs me tight every morning and says 'I wish you wouldn't go!'" My heart bleeds for those children. Society forces the woman and her child to forgo their natural inclination for "the way things ought to be." If the mother does not stay at home with the child, who does? strangers? As a couple of friends who worked in daycare informed me, they witnessed many children's first words, first steps, and other things that parents completely missed. It is in a woman's nature to be a mother. This cannot be denied physically or emotionally...I would hope that no one has tried to deny it spiritually. Built into the very fibers of a woman's body are the ability (and, frankly, the necessity) to carry a child within herself to term and to nourish this child for the first few years of it's life. The mother and the child are inseparable from the very moment of conception until the moment of birth. Why would you try to separate them after that? The child still naturally depends on the mother for everything...she just has a more active role right now that others, most especially the child's father, can share with her now. I'm not here arguing that the mother can naturally satisfy every need the child has while being raised...just that she should have a primary role together with the father. I have many friends who are young mothers, and all of them stay at home with their children. Most of them did not intend for this to happen, but after the child came they couldn't let go. So many women I work with felt the same, but they were made to feel silly, or like "don't worry...you will get over it...it's just a natural inclination." Uh...DUH!!!! It sure the heck is! This is what a woman is oriented toward!!! It is demeaning to her worth as a woman to claim that motherhood is not a full time job and deserving of her intelligence and talent. Could she use her skills elsewhere to accomplish good? Of course she could! Is there any good greater than her family? NO YOU MORON!!!

 Firstly, parents love their children and are constantly trying to discover their personality, their hopes, their dreams. They know their children best and should be the ones disciplining, nurturing, and encouraging them. They actually have their children's best interest at heart whereas they are one of many for anyone else who could possibly be caring for them. Secondly, it is better for kids to be with their parents as much as possible, to know that there is always someone there who loves them and wants to care for them. This builds trust, honesty, and respect in a child...something that our world is (not so surprisingly) lacking today. Thirdly, it is better for the parents. Knowing that a parent is with the child, the breadwinner is happy and relaxed about leaving the home knowing that the children will be cared for by heir own parent! Less stress =happier life, happier people, peace, weight lose, increased libido, better prayer life...you get the picture.

Come on people! Wake up!