5 Things I love...

... about being a mom.

That's the topic Subhashree passed on to me via HBM.

A sweet topic. I have to just shut my eyes and open my heart and let the words flow... Oh wait. I have to keep my eyes open - touch typing is not a skill I have mastered so far.

So, What am I learning from being a mom?

1. I love that Motherhood, like Wisdom, just dawns on you one fine morning when you gaze into the eyes of your little ones and wonder how you got so lucky. No amount of collective knowledge on the subject can impart even a fraction of what it involves, the array of feelings evoked - of deep love, responsibility, tenderness, even pride - like never before, like nothing else can. A true blessing


2. I love that it has helped me find out that while my legendary short-temper and impatience have not fled, Motherhood has certainly made me a better person to be around and get to know, while at the same time reeling back in awe at my parents, grateful for being born to them. I complain less, appreciate things more, and put myself last without a second thought. It is very humbling. Not just in a material sense, but in a spiritual sense as well. I don't care about keeping my wardrobe fashionable or sporting a trendy hairstyle... and I seem to gravitate towards uttering prayers more often for their well-being


3. The tinkling of Ana's anklets and thumping of Oggie's footsteps as they squeal and jostle each other around the house is something I could not have dreamed of four years ago... and is something that I certainly cannot imagine my life without now. Kissing baby Ana's chubby little cheeks, hugging her tight when she feels upset, cuddling little Oggie's tiny body as he settles down next to me at nights, singing 'Yucky Mucky Nappy' to get Ana to smile and going 'Aaa-Chooooo!' till my throat hurts just so I can watch Oggie's precious giggle...


4. Knowing that love is not just indulgence and mollycoddling, nicety and tra-la-la, but is also firmness and discipline, learning to say "no" and sticking to it even if your heart is bursting to say "yes" to keep them happy... to see past the gut-wrenching sobs and never-ending tears and know that you are doing right by them


5. The spiritual growth that has happened unbeknownst to me where I can appreciate a Zen moment with a screaming one year old attached to a leg and a whiny four year old hanging on to my shirt while I am cooking a sumptuous meal and talking on the phone across continents to my mother in India getting a recipe for home herbal concoction I could offer the kids to alleviate their cough

image source:http://nri-shakti.com/images/YashodaKrishna.gif

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you, but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backwards nor tarries with yesterday.
-- Kahlil Gibran

This is technically a tag, and that means I should pass it on to others - but, the tiny little community of moms I know in the blog world have all been tagged with this already. So, am leaving it open for anybody to take it up and write as many posts they'd like about this sweet topic.