A Mother's Promise

I thought I was done blogging for today but then I saw this video about our president, Barack Obama. I became instantly inspired to write more.

Our president comments on memories of his father, mother, grandparents and his country.

"I was shaped more by (my father's) absence than his presence," Pres. Obama said. That is a powerful statement in these days where people claim their lives were ruined by an absent parent. But his mother saw a promise in him...and she made sure to give him the skills needed to fulfill that promise.

Very much like Obama's mom, I despise cruelty. As the mom of a special needs child, bullying will be a part of my son's future, much to my chagrin. I am tasked with finding a way to arm my son with the needed tools to not just deal, but overcome these challenges.

Something else I love about our president is just the way he appears to admire and love his wife. There are photos of beautiful moments when Obama just looks at Michelle and you can see there is a bond. That bond was created on their first date...AWESOME...and it appears to have longevity.

I watched Apollo 13 the other day...that was the date movie I saw with my future husband. Alas, grand blast-offs do not always end in a shining hour. Such an ending is not possible when the core family values are missing.

Obama describes his mom as "the beating heart" of his family. Watching his mom work hard, struggle and survive made an impression on Obama, just as my witnessing my mother struggle made an impression on me. I hope to make such an impression on my son. Some may say an Autistic child can not grasp such concepts but I say never sell a child (special needs or not) short. He understands much more than others may think.

Although my life is going through some very rough times, I know there are inspirational women -- single moms -- who are making a difference for their children. In many cases, the mom is their only hope for stability, love and a bright future. Although a former partner may work hard to wield the child's love as a weapon against that mom, she knows how keep focused on a higher goal. Although everything may seem lost and you are sinking into a dark hole, your child's love can be a bright light in that abyss. Being a single mom is not easy and many times there is no "small stuff" to sweat. All your stuff is huge, dominating and hurtful.

In those times, I'll think about our president's mom. She was a fighter and raised a champion...in spite of her child's father, not because of him.