motherhood.

 In the beginning, Motherhood and I had some time adjusting to each other.  When Little A was a wee-ish one, I read many books about entering this sacred and bizarre land of Motherhood.  I wanted answers as to why it was difficult, why no one had seemingly told me how hard it was, and just where the heck had my identity gone in this jumbled up mess of parenting?!

Some books were all cheerleader-esque…  ”Yeah Mommy!”  “You GO Girl!”  “Playgroup-Mommies-are-Best-Friends!”   Yes, they may have made me laugh here and there, but they didn’t delve into the rite of passage of Motherhood.  I wanted to read about the giving up, the sacrificing of ones own body, mind, and soul to another little person.  I wanted to hear about how Motherhood wasn’t always bonbons and sweet puppies and happy walks in the park and baking sprinkle cookies. 

I wanted to know about struggles and difficulties and pain.  Why?  I wanted to know that I wasn’t the only one.  I wanted to know the hardships, because really, if you don’t know the hardships — how can it be better?  How can it be brighter? 

Eventually I came across a real winner.  A book that shared insights and was honest and true and poignant .  It was refreshing.  

Between Interruptions: Thirty Women Tell the Truth About Motherhood.

I had the pleasure of taking a writing class last autumn with the author, Cori Howard.  It was amazing to be able to dialogue with other mothers from all across the country (we met online via Skype) and discuss and share our experiences and writing.  It was invaluable to realize how individually and geographically different we all are, yet how universal the common bond of motherhood itself is.

So, all this to give context as to some of the writing that i’ve been recently posting, as well as a little plug to the Momoir Project.   (Make sure to check out the website if you’re interested in signing up to take a class yourself!)

To better things,

Steph