The Impact of an Amazing Mom

Today’s newsletter is coming a little early as I want to honor all of our mothers on this Mother’s Day. I am taking this column to honor my own mom, who I was fortunately able to visit for a short time on Saturday. She is in a nursing home about 2 ½ hours away and will turn 91 in less than two weeks but is still sharp as a tack and we are so blessed to have her in our lives. As I drove home last night, I reflected on what makes her such a great mom and here are a few things I settled on:

•  Positivity: Mom has had a lot of set backs and adversity through life-particularly health concerns of family members and also her own battles with heart and cancer issues. Never does she complain about her own fate but instead stays upbeat and instead puts her concern on how others are doing. She is a great listener and wants people to know she is interested in what they have to say. One thing I always remember is how she responded when she was in the audience at an event or performance. Mom said she always smiled when a performer looked at her because she wanted them to know they were doing a good job and didn’t get nervous looking at the crowd!

•  Servant Leader: This ties to what I just said…mom is always ready to help out others when they need it and it doesn’t matter what the situation or the task, mom has always been willing to do whatever is needed and help out whereever needed. Her family has always come first and if sometihng needed to get done, she didn’t look for others to do it, she pitched in and did it herself. No task was ever too minial for her!

•  Accountability: She may always be positive, but with us kids and with her family, she has always set high standards and expectations and made sure we were accountable for our actions. NEVER has she tried to cover up times when her kids messed up and made sure we were always responsible for our actions. I could share countless times (mostly with my siblings! :)) where one of us did not rise to the proper standard and instead of making excuses or going in to get a decision changed, she would make us take care of our own business and communicate that to the people involved. That lesson has always stuck with me!

•   Presence: I have been involved in a large number of activities over the years from elementary through all my years as a teacher and coach. My parents were always there-cheering from the stands or later in life, watching online, or calling once the games were over. It didn’t matter that they were incredibly busy working, getting things done on the farm, church activities, or other things….their kids’ lives and activities always came first. It didn’t matter if it was my greatest triumphs or biggest disappointments-they were always there to provide what was needed. Dad has been gone over 8 years and mom still does this is her own way-watching games on the computer, or making a call to check in after games.

•  Unconditional love: A mother’s love should always be unwavering, regards of the actions or reactions. Mom has always had that. When one of us kids misbehaved or expressed ourselves in a wrong manner, she always listened and tried to understand the reason for our reactions. When she disagreed, she would calmly let us know her thoughts but it was always in a supportive manner and very much empowering. She would ask questions and make us think, but then empowered us to move forward with our own decisions while knowing any consequences that might come from it. What a powerful tool it gave us to build our self esteem and know that we always had people in our corner going forward.

I hope you read this and connected similar lessons to what you have learned from your own mom. What an impact moms have on the lives of their kids and I trust you have celebrated your mom today and reflected on the impact she has had on you. Have a great week!

Coach K