Who are You?

That is a broad question, who are you?  Take a few minutes to think about that. I will venture to say your list will look something like this: a mom, daughter, wife, aunt, cousin, friend, a career woman, a volunteer, a stay at home mom, an ultimate frisbee player, piano player, artist, singer, etc… That list could go on and on.  Is there a role you feel you identify the most?  Most of us would likely list mom first-  which leads me to the next question:  Do you feel that your identity is completely wrapped up in being a mom? That is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as these other pieces are not lost completely. 

How does one go about feeling secure in those other areas? Part of it is literal radical acceptance.  Saying to yourself, “yep things have changed and are different but I can still be a _____.”  Do we ever feel really secure in our identity as a mom? Probably not. It takes trial and error.  We all have slip ups and bad days. We extend ourselves grace, just as we do to other people. I think it is more difficult to be gracious to ourselves than to other people.

At this time of year,  with the hustle and bustle, we can certainly question our identity.  We can struggle to find time to fulfill all our roles. What do you want your family to remember about the holidays?  Think about that when you are down on yourself or stressed. You want reality to be taught. Not the vision that you are flawless, that is how your family can set unrealistic expectations for themselves and they feel they don’t measure up.  Settle in, snuggle by a fire, lounge around and just “be.” This is hard for a lot of people to do, but I challenge you to try.

Merry Christmas to all my followers!