Happy "Anyone Who's Mothered" Day

I am a mother and I have a great mother so one would think that I should be all gaga (not to be confused with the Lady) over May 9th. However, if you know anything about me from reading thus far in my blog, I have many views and opinions. A few deep thoughts are coming and they are not so funny this time around. (Just a little disclaimer in case you thought I was going to entertain you.)

I feel like holidays such as Mother's Day can be very cruel for those who:

a. Don't have a mother
b. Are not mothers and want to be
c. Long to be fathers
d. Have lost a child
e. Are missing a far away child.

The list goes on.

I suppose I might be more hypersensitive to this issue since it was quite a while before I actually became a mother. I remember my small, innocent nephew asking me once, "Auntie, why don't you like kids?" Ouch. He thought that because I didn't have kids, I didn't like kids.

The truth is that there are countless mothers out there "undercover". Many have never been pregnant and many are not even women. We've all "mothered" someone, somewhere in our lifetime. Whether it was in a college dorm, comforting a friend with a broken heart, far away from home. Or the teacher who nurtures a student who doesn't get much attention at home. Or the wonderful friends who treat your kids like their own (you know who you are). Or the sister who is a perpetual Godmother to your kids and loves your kids unconditionally. To the dads who are going it alone and acting in the roles of Mom and Dad. To the coworker who takes you under her wing and gives you that much needed motherly advice you won't take from your own mom. Or the sweet nurses who hold your hand in the delivery room telling you it will all be OK. And what about the thousands of people who adopt homeless animals and "mother" them to pieces?

They've all served as the role of "Mother" in some capacity and to me, they all "count" as mothers on Mother's Day. I don't want Mother's Day to be a day where someone feels excluded. Call me crazy but even my own mother thinks this holiday and many other "Hallmark" holidays should be extinct.

So, whether you are a mother in the technical sense of the word, or not, please celebrate all who have Mothered. The world has become a much better place thanks to all of you "Moms".

Happy Mother's Day to you all.