I Am a Mother

My visiting teachers gave me the book "I Am a Mother" by Jane Clayson Johnson for Christmas. It is such a great book. For any mothers who sometimes feel that the work that they do at home isn't praiseworthy, you need to read this book. For any mothers who feel embarrassed to tell others that their profession is a "mother," this book is for you. For any mother out there anywhere, this book is for you!!! While working in an OB/GYN office, I saw many instances where women seemed embarrassed to write MOTHER as their occupation. Many would try to make up a name for it that would sound more "important" like Domestic Engineer.

In this book, the author writes about her experience in leaving a high profile job in television news to be a stay at home mother. After a dinner, each of the people were asked to introduce him or herself. She writes how many women described themselves: "Oh, I'm just a mom.", "I don't have any credentials; I'm just raising our six children.", "My life's not very exciting right now; I'm just a stay-at-home mom.", and "I don't have very much to offer here. I'm just a mother." The author asked herself, "What have I done?" And later, "Could they be right? Is it possible that motherhood is an insignificant, second-rate occupation?"

She goes on to write, "What I have since learned is that God's definition of motherhood and the world's definition are vastly different. And sometimes--probably all too often--the challenges, daily physical and emotional exhaustion, and occasional self-doubt that come along with being a mother cause many of us to buy into an inaccurate and destructive understanding of our role. There just doesn't seem to be a lot of joy--or fullfillment--associated with the world's interpretation of motherhood."

"But when we trust in the arm of the Lord rather than the voices of the world, everything changes. Elder Neal A Maxwell observed, "When the real history of mankind is fully disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound of lullabies? The great armisticies made by military men or the peacemaking of women in homes and in neighborhoods? Will what happened in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what happened in congress?"

Later, she quotes Elder Jeffrey R Holland: "You are doing God's work. You are doing it wonderfully well. He is blessing you, and He will bless you, even-no, especially-when your days and your nights may be most challenging. Like the woman who anonymously, meekly, perhaps even with hesitation and some embarrassment, fought her way through the crowd just to touch the hem of the Master's garment, so Christ will say to the women who worry and wonder and weep over their responsibility as mothers, 'Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.' And it will make your children whole as well"

The author writes: A "co-partner with the Creator himself." That is a mother. We are mothers. The next time someone inquires what you do or asks you to describe yourself, would you say with confidence and with joy, "I am a Mother"?

Just a little example of the great encouragement that this book holds for all of us who are mothers and even those who aspire to be mothers.