You’re Not Just A Stay-At-Home Mom
When asked what they “do,” many women feel insecure responding that they stay at home raising their children. Their response is often hedged with words like “just” and “only,” and they mention vague plans for what path they will choose once the kids are grown.
Today’s society does make it difficult to fully embrace the calling of motherhood. Women are pressured into thinking that their worth is only found in a career outside the home. But the truth is quite the contrary; motherhood is a most fulfilling and heroic vocation in which the feminine genius shines forth boldly and beautifully.
Motherhood Is Heroic
At the March for Life in Washington D.C. on January 24, 2020, President Trump stated that “mothers are heroes.” One might not immediately associate a diaper-bag-toting woman with the stereotypical cape-wearing warrior, but there truly could not be a better comparison. Heroes exhibit great courage and unparalleled virtue. Their lives are dedicated to the service of others. And such is a mother’s life.
A mother’s tender response deserves the same praise as that of a DC Comics character.
Her days are devoted to loving and nurturing those who are largely dependent upon her. She chooses, again and again, to set aside her own desires so as to better care for her children. While sobs from a bassinet are not as glamorous as the Bat Signal illuminating the night sky, a mother’s tender response deserves the same praise as that of a DC Comics character.
Motherhood Doesn’t Waste Intelligence
Some women fear that choosing the home over the office will indicate a lack of talent or intelligence. The idea that one’s genius and creativity must be channeled into a nine-to-five job is utterly misguided. Tasha Tudor, an American author and illustrator, once said, “You aren’t stupid because you’re a housewife. When you’re stirring the jam, you can read Shakespeare.” While a jocular comment, she points to an important truth: your vocation does not dictate your intellect (and vice versa).
Motherhood involves a great deal of cleverness, creativity, and wisdom. Raising the world’s future generations requires a brilliance that is all too often underestimated and underappreciated.
Your vocation does not dictate your intellect and vice versa.
Motherhood Is Hard
Another misconception that often deters women from proudly proclaiming their stay-at-home status is that the job is easy. Feeding, entertaining, educating, disciplining, and loving children is not at all easy. The role of stay-at-home mother is truly several jobs rolled into one (and it is a 24/7, 365-day gig). Rarely do mothers get moments of peaceful solitude, and if they do, they’re often spent tidying up, cooking, or preparing for the next activity.
There are no holidays, snow days, or sick days from motherhood. While you may spend some days in your pajamas, you’re certainly not leading a life of leisure. Motherhood is difficult and demanding - but in the most wonderful way.
The role of stay-at-home mother is truly several jobs rolled into one.
Motherhood is a True Expression of Femininity
Unfortunately, today’s modern feminist movement frequently fails to recognize the vast number of females who have chosen childrearing over a typical career. If the aim is to empower all women, mothers should certainly be championed. Their choice to care for children reveals a beautiful gift that our sex innately possesses. Women alone can bear children. Women alone can physically nurture a child. Women alone possess the compassionate instinct for mothering. Femininity is fully embodied in motherhood, and that is something worth celebrating and encouraging.
Femininity is fully embodied in motherhood, and that is something worth celebrating and encouraging.
Conclusion
So, to all women staying home with the babies, you are not just a stay-at-home mom. You are the hope for the future. You are the heroes of your children and of society. You have selflessly devoted yourself to a job that pays in sticky peanut butter and jelly kisses - and in the joy of cultivating new life that will offer so much goodness to the world. Though your efforts may often seem unseen and undervalued, they are not. Your days are spent creating the future, and for that, we thank you and applaud you.