Ideal Mother
/The story of the Indiana mother that saved her two children as her house collapsed around them from tornado winds has prompted me to think about the qualities that an ideal mother has.
- Does whatever is needed to keep her children safe
- Makes sure they are well feed (quantity and quality of food appropriate for their healthy growth and development)
- Holds them when they need to be held
- Knows when to let them decide or do it themselves
- Supports their intellectual development by enabling them to satisfy their natural curiosity and presenting them with opportunities to expand their understanding of the world
- Encourages increasing independence
- Seeks medical or other expertise as needed
- Emphasizes the importance of school and other preparation for adult life
- Adapts to the individual needs of the child
- Provides for basic physical needs like housing and clothing
This is not a complete list; it is just the first 10 things I thought of. My perception is that almost every mother has the natural inclination to strive for the ideal and most of us have a very similar concept of what the ideal is although our ability to actually do it varies widely. Part of the ideal is probably instinctual - part of our human heritage. In the end, we want our children to become healthy and productive young adults and shift our parenthood focus more toward the friendship end of the spectrum of motherhood.
Isn’t it wonderful that in today’s world, there is a strong likelihood that we’ll know them for more years as adults than as children?
