I would like to preface this article by saying that I love my father, and I know that he loves me. Everyone makes mistakes throughout their lifetime, and parents are certainly no exception. By sharing this article I am not attempting to bash all of the fathers out there, but simply shine a light on the wonderful beautiful mothers that have had to do it all on their own.
I was in preschool when my parents got divorced, so I don’t remember anything about them being together. I’ve only ever known a life of being a child of divorce, but that has never bothered me. The only problem I have ever experienced within their divorce is my mother having to assume the role of both mother and father to my brothers and me.
Don’t get me wrong, this has made me more resilient than I can ever begin to explain. For starters it taught me to never depend on a guy. I don’t mean this in an unhealthy, all men are evil way. I just mean that it taught me that you cannot base your happiness on someone. You cannot expect someone to be there to do everything for you. In this world you have to be independent. My mother acting as both mother and father taught me that in order to love others you must love yourself first. Through this was she able to show me what a strong willed woman looks like, and that is something I will always be grateful for.
When my mother had to act as both mother and father, it taught me patience like you wouldn’t believe. As a single mom raising three kids, she couldn’t always get to my problems as quickly as I may have wanted her to. This taught me that you have to be patient with people, and learn that the world does not solely revolve around you. It also always amazed me how patient my mother seemed to be with all of us. Yes, there were times when she broke down like everyone, but she showed more patience and devotion to us than one thousand parents combined.
Last, but not least, when your mother has to be both mom and dad you realize that when you have a family of your own you want them to consistently have both parents. Not just weekends and holidays. You want your children to feel love from both sides, because even though your mother pours all of her love into you, you can always use the extra love from another parent. However, knowing that you have at least one person that would do anything on this earth to keep you happy, to devote all of her time and emotions to you is more beautiful than anything I could ever ask for. So thank you mother for loving me, for teaching me things that my father should have, and for assuming a role that you should have never had to take on. Thank you.
