By Geetanjali Sharma
Last weekend surfaced some emotions I thought I was bravely in control of.
As a modern-day woman, being passionate and dedicated to work brings a sense of accomplishment to many. Our society has scooped many minds out of the work around home chores and built a community that’s stronger and practical. And rightly so, since many wise thoughts often get overcooked with the steam of a vessel or brilliant business ideas get dusted off with sweeps. There are still those who opt to take care of their homes and responsibly find reason to be full time moms. Modern women who take time off to build a family and spring back to work the day they wish, and ace it all, have transformed society into something more powerful.
Motherhood has been a turning point in my journey. From planning outings to being homebound, from staying in touch to losing sense of time, from crease free dresses to milk-stained clothes, from religiously following skin care routines to submitting to a messy hair season, my world has turned upside down in the best possible way. It has taught me to be intentional about everything I do. Days turn into hours and minutes pass by so fast while following my little crawler around the house that emotions swirl up and make me wonder how effortless it felt when mum told me about her journey as a mother.
The softer sense of knowing the emotional state of a new mom is perhaps best understood by a mom. The silence, the chatter, the tears or the smiles, mothers sense it all and step in the second you begin to drop with exhaustion.
It breaks my heart to think of doing this any other way. With the presence of two ladies who dedicated their lives in raising their kids, I feel blessed to call them my moms. While they keep finding ways to help and support me through this journey, I realise the need I have for them to be around. This emotion brushed my heart and got me feeling insecure about doing this all by myself. Moms who’ll be reading this will relate to the absolute joy it is to have your moms to help you through the tips and tricks of raising babies.
Our moms have done it all, seen it all and felt it too. Holding them while navigating this phase is certainly therapeutic. Be it the final nod or a quick suggestion, being present or guiding from afar, a warm hug or quietly taking over, moms are even better at being grandmoms.
(Geetanjali Sharma is an author and communications specialist. She holds a post-graduate degree in international communication from Macquarie University, Australia.)
