A Tribute to My Dream Warrior Mom

I adore how having a child brings up happy memories from childhood that haven't crossed my mind in the past 20+ years...This morning my memory was triggered by observing how parents always seem to have an "amount" to describe how much they love their children - for example: "to the moon and back" or "to the heavens." When contemplating how I could quantify my love for Hadleigh this morning, I recalled mom's daily statement to me as a little girl "I love you like a hog loves slop!" For anyone who has grown up on a farm or had hogs - you know that's an incredible amount! I realize it may not be transferable to my daughter growing up in the city, but it meant the world to me as a child ------- this memory also reminded me of the day mom made a carrot cake, which didn't exactly turn out. As a young mom, she decided to turn her mistake into a fun time for the kids, so we put candles in the cake, took it to the pig pin in the back yard, sang happy birthday to our 2 hogs, and dumped the cake in on top of them...they seemed to enjoy it...maybe even a little more than their usual slop...Thinking of my mom this morning and how thankful I am that she was/is such a great woman!
I’m a member of a women’s social network group that is all about being a “dream warrior.” The group’s definition of dream warrior is a “bad a**, brave audacious female who constantly fights for her pie in the sky” – it’s about the empowerment of women and honoring women who are “dream warriors.” brave, audacious female who constantly fights for her pie in the sky.  brave, audacious female who constantly fights for her pie in the sky. Lately, a few of the post have been about remembering dream warriors that have since passed ---- many of these memories are about women who seem to be feminist –(which my mother certainly IS NOT) – but she has demonstrated amazing growth and triumph over adversity in other ways, which I think is worth honoring! My mom grew up in foster care, which demonstrated to me as a young child that we are not all fortunate enough to have loving parents…I think it also made me see people in general as more similar to myself rather than different– if mama Peggy (her foster mother) could treat my mother (a total stranger) like family --- that had to mean something about our connection to all people – not just those who are family or similar to us. The stories mom shared with me about her early childhood (prior to living with Peggy) shaped my empathy for others, and I often wonder if my life path would look different if not influenced by her story. She took a very painful experience and turned into a beautiful life of helping others. There is no way I could adequately capture what an inspiration she has been to my life and the lives of others, so I’ll simply say her strength of character and triumph over adversity represents the life of a true dream warrior! Her spirit lives in me, the work I do every day, and is a necessary contributor to the development of my dream warrior identity.
The Point:
1)      Take time as a mother to reflect on your own childhood, the feelings you experienced as a child can give you a lot more valuable information about how to parent (alternatively how not to parent) than any book you read
2)      Identify a “dream warrior” who inspires you, this will fuel your dedication, attitude, and success in life
3)      Honor the influence of those who have impacted your life – they deserve to know how special they are

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