Motherhood From Tomorrow

I escape to my room for about 15 minutes of solace. I had just finished helping my 5^th grader with math, while my 3 year old screamed at my feet for not buying popsicles, and my 1^st grader used his new texting app to text the word “poop” to everyone he knew.

I hop on to Facebook hoping to scroll mindlessly and I encounter it. One of those inspirational motherhood posts; the one designed to encourage tired mamas. It talks about how the mom is frustrated with Legos and shoes on the floor, but one day those will all be gone. I stop reading. Same old, same old: cherish these moments because someday they’ll be gone.

Maybe you are one who gets a boost from those posts…but I doubt it. You’re probably like me. You stop and think about what your childless home will look like and you realize that you will miss your babies. Then, it hits you. The waves of guilt because you’re tired. You’re so tired. You feel like your brain is melting from the menial tasks and you’re are overused and under-appreciated. And, dang it, you’re not appreciating it.

Do you know why you aren’t appreciating it? Because you’re not crazy! Congratulations! You’re not crazy! Even though every child in your home is trying to make you feel crazy, you have successfully avoided it up to this point. You deserve a cookie…oooh, cookies…but I digress.

Jesus said not to not worry about tomorrow, but somehow I think it’s OK for me to worry about what Empty-Nest Jen will think about my current situation. Wait, what? And even worse, someone thinks it’s OK to encourage tired Mamas with guilt from the future! This is NOT OK.

Now, don't get me wrong. I do think that sometimes in life we look back and wish that we had done better. We try to share those lessons so that someone else doesn't make the same mistake we did. I don't think anyone is trying to heap condemnation on an already tired mom. But...and it's a big but, a tired Mama is going to be better able to appreciate the moment after she's had a nap. Maybe, to encourage a mom, dishes and babysitting is a better bet than trying to make her see from a sketchy future.

God sees, tired Mama. God sees that you are doing your best. God sees that you are loving your little people with everything you have, even when you don’t think it’s enough. And God doesn’t want you to worry about your future feelings. See, you don’t have grace for future scenarios that may or may not occur. If you’re anything like me, you’re using every ounce of grace you have to walk through your day. Empty-Nest You will have the grace you need for that moment. Rest assured that the God who stays by your side while you explain to your 3^rd grader that she can pick up even though she has a broken arm, will still be by your side when you’re sitting in silence. You might even be able to hear Him a little better.