|
THE PARENTING DARE BLOGI love, love, love mothers.
Join our community! |
|
|
THE PARENTING DARE BLOGI love, love, love mothers.
Join our community! |
|
I recently sat down and asked two college graduates this question:
What do you wish your parents would have taught you but didn’t? Why did I ask them that question? Well, I had this brilliant idea of making a blog post, “What you wish your parents would have taught you before you graduated from high school.”
0 Comments
Author's Note: When this post was originally written, I believed the the BLACK LIVES MATTER movement was composed of good people with good intentions. I am about that. However, I have since learned that a group of Marxists more or less hijacked BLM for their own devious purposes. I am not about that life and I do not support The Black Lives organization.
I decided to leave this post up, simply because it showcases just how naive I was. Read. Learn. Grow. ********************************************************** Last week I wrote a post about George Floyd and how his needless death had greatly impacted my own life. I dug a little deeper into the background of racism in America and frankly, I was appalled and grieved by what I discovered. Read that post now: We are at a Defining Moment. As a white woman living snugly and safely in the heartland of America, I just didn’t know what I didn’t know. I walked into my husband’s home office this week and I plopped on a chair.
“What’s wrong, honey?” I was quiet for a moment, assessing how I was actually feeling. Then I just stated the truth, “I’ve been thinking about George Floyd’s death.” My husband stopped what he was doing, turned his chair and said, “Yeah, me too.” “I’m just so angry. And so sad. My heart hurts.” Oh my stars. I have a question for you. It’s kinda big. You might wanna come back to this post when you have some time to actually think. (I have lots of children roaming in and out. I know what distraction mode feels like!)
Okay. The question: Have you ever tried stopping an unwanted behavior in your life? Think for a moment. Have you ever done something over and over and then decided, you know, I am going to stop doing that now. I am in love with my 8 children. I have been with them, moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day. FOR YEARS.
I have fed and watered them. I have changed their diapers, I have made them countless meals. I have loved them through all the ups, downs and sideways of life. One of my jobs as their mommy is to keep them safe. I have done that, at least for the most part. Okay, Mother Friends, it’s time to Unite.
It’s been a long spring. Our kids have had all sorts of things “taken away” from them, things that they didn’t expect. School (as they knew it) ended abruptly. Our kids were put into a totally new situation: learning from home. I love to watch movies. And to be honest, now that Life is On Hold, it has been easier to spend more time, especially in the evenings, gathered around the Big Screen with my family.
It’s been a fabulous way to relax. One odd decision that my husband and I had to make: what to do with our 11-year old son. He is not “technically” old enough to watch PG-13 movies. Every year, on May 1st, my 17-year old self shows up. She sits me down and starts asking me questions.
“Lori, you know what today is, right?” Of course I do. How could I not remember? It’s the day my best friend, Brenda Jean Florian, died of cancer. We were juniors in high school. “Well, you know what she requested of you, right?” I love the rosary. It’s such a cool way to be present in this life and bring in the life of Jesus. I have been marveling at that, actually. I’m an ordinary housewife in south central Kansas and yet, when I take time in the day, I have the opportunity to ponder really big miracles.
My whole life makes more sense when I keep the rosary as part of my daily. As Lent began this year, I felt a deep desire to give this gift to my kids still living at home. (And we all-of-a-sudden-because-of-this-darn-virus, had the time!) Now, here’s the thing; my bambinos know all about the rosary. They know the mysteries. They could lead the rosary in a church setting. This weekend my girls had Prom. With our family. At home.
Six of my eight children are no longer in their school setting. They are working/learning virtually. They are participating in Zoom meetings. They are on "screens" many hours a day. Everything has changed. |
Welcome!
I'm Lori Doerneman Wife. Mom. Catholic. Idealist with 8 kids, keeping it real. Archives
December 2023
Note: The Parenting Dare is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com!
|