It is true that to raise strong women of our own, we must have witnessed what strength looks like. This post is a little bit about the impact of the women before me. How my grandmothers and my own mother paved the path with grace for many of us trying to walk behind them…
(Lucia with her two oldest boys. Rocco looks so much like my Uncle Pete on the left!)
(My grandmother Margaret holding my mother as a baby.)
(Some of the photos my grandpa John took of my grandmother Margaret as a mother. They lived in small square mile German town in Ohio.)
(My grandma Lucia holding my dad.)
Margaret was (and still is!) a talented oil painter, married to a photographer, with 10 children. Lucia, a strong willed and witty stay at home mother, married to a carpenter/ leather worker who had 13 children. Both women whose family tree included immigrants from different countries. Both raising big families in neighboring states. Both women knew how to dress to the nines for the right occasion with the right hat or shade of lipstick. When days are tough I pull strength knowing that these two women went through similar days. They may have fed their babies differently, raised their children in different ways, and experienced different hardships. However, there is something very similar between them I have come to know and value. They both were determined and devoted, and loved to the best of their capabilities. Despite difficulties such as financial strain, health obstacles, and even losing children, their strength was rooted deep in their love of family and faith in God. They ended up becoming good friends after three of Lucia’s children married three of Margaret’s children! (Yes, two my mom’s brothers married two of my dad’s sisters! They met through my parents.)
(My mom put together these costumes one year: Dorothy, Glinda the good witch, Sr. Mary Margaret, and a clown. Guess who won the costume contest?)
(My beautiful mother and Rocco at Easter.)
My own mother has always been my personal heroine. She was an English teacher, and when she put that on hold to raise us, she poured her creative talents into her motherhood (as you can see by the costumes above!) I now understand how difficult many of those days were raising us, but somehow, she managed to leave us all with a lasting impression of childhood happiness. She fought hard to give us a sense of belonging and of purpose without ever having to doubt the safe haven of love she built for us. She continues to be a source of wisdom, understanding, and unconditional love as she was throughout my whole life. I have grown in my confidence as a woman and a mother thanks to her unwavering encouragement.
Now that I am in the thick of raising my own children, it helps me to think about the lives these women lead and still lead. I have come to see that their faithful love of their families built a rich well for the next generations to pull from for years to come. It is a well of security, strength, and faith that has offered a place for me to rest my feet when everything else seems to blur. I feel indebted to them for this, and I hope my own children can experience the life giving love that comes from the well they built.
Who is this kind of warrior of a woman in your life? Who are the women who were your well?I hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s Day with those you love most!
