I spent the first ten years of my life growing up in a middle-class family, just like so many other Americans in the 1960s. My MOM and dad were raising my sisters and me to grow up and do something with our lives.
We were fortunate to live in comfortable homes in the emerging suburbs and to attend some of the best schools. My parents drove nice cars, and we took vacations that sometimes included flying in airplanes.
The middle-class lifestyle came to an abrupt end when my dad decided he wanted to divorce my MOM. In 1970, divorce was uncommon and there weren’t many norms established for how to deal with it socially. many people found it impossible to remain friends with my mom and us children due to our new circumstances.
I watched my MOM go from being Mrs. My Dad’s Full Name to Mrs. Her Full Name. What this meant was she no longer had an identity which included access to credit, loans or even acceptance in the suburbs. She was now a single parent living in a two-parent world, with the others MOMs staying at home and not working.
During the years that followed my parents’ divorce, I learned these three lessons from my MOM. The first was to Make others feel special, the second was to Overcome adversity and the third was to Model strength for others.
MOM showed me how to treat people with respect and kindness in all of her interactions. She was always polite and courteous to the butcher at the meat market, the milkman who brought the dairy products directly to the refrigerator in our home, or the cashier at the grocery store.
My MOM was natural gifted in Making others feel special. I saw it happen over and over again growing up, and I see it as she interacts with people today. She has a way of making people feel accepted that makes her even more special in my mind.
The second thing I learned from my MOM was Overcoming adversity. After my parents divorced, my MOM was left with four children to raise on her own with modest financial support. She was eventually able to go out and find a job with a company that was primarily run by women, who were not threatened by her status or concerned that she had not been in the workforce for over 15 years.
The resilience she showed in coming back from the divorce was a great example for me as a young man of how anyone can come back from anything. When you move past the pain and hurt and pick yourself up, you can do anything you put your mind to in your life.
My MOM had a successful long-term career with McDonald’s, where she was able to make people feel special. My MOM showed me the power of bouncing back and being yourself.
Lastly, my MOM taught me how to Model strength for others. We cannot assume that we all know how to access our own strength. My MOM was strong way before I was her son and as a result of her life experiences, she knew how to be strong and confident. What I got to witness over and over again was a woman standing up for herself during a time when women were not respected, or quite frankly, treated well by both men and women.
My MOM held her head high and took the high road as a matter of habit. She was fearless when it came time to face situations that she anticipated would be awkward or stressful. She held her own and genuinely projected confidence and strength—which others almost always noticed and acknowledged.
MOM is adept at Making others feel special, Overcoming adversity and Modeling strength with others. She taught me these things as I grew up, and I was able to apply them in my own life and career. My successes were enhanced by my MOM modeling these lessons for me.
As I get ready to celebrate another Mother’s Day with my MOM, I am extremely grateful for her sharing these three critical life lessons with me. Wishing my MOM and all of the Mothers a very Happy Mother’s Day celebration!
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