Our May focus on kids wasn’t planned to coincide with Mother’s Day, but it is quite fitting. Did anyone else get a little choked up reading this month’s Word on the Street (p 28 )? When Lara told me she was going to ask the question “What words should moms hear more often?” I imagined her asking adults, and them talking from the perspective of what they want to hear, or what they wish they’d told their own moms. But she came at it from the angle of elementary-aged kids, and the answers are just precious!
It’s interesting how the role of mother changes. My own kids are getting quite grown up, becoming increasingly independent and self-sufficient. I watch them with a mix of pride and satisfaction, at the same time missing those younger days when mom was all-important in their world. Chatting with a very wise friend recently, she told me that our job at this point in our teenagers’ lives is just to be present for them. To be accessible, so when they need us they know we have time to listen and space to help them.
This friend also happens to be a teacher and I think that gives her extra insight. In our own families we’re learning as we go – figuring things out together and hopefully doing our best. At school, teachers get the brunt of all our parenting experiments. They spend time with our most precious charges, educating and nurturing them, helping shape the people they’ll become. I was so pleased then, to see the exquisitely elegant Madame Johanne in our In Fashion feature this month (p 56). As a Kindergarten teacher at Deep Cove elementary she has played a role in the lives of many, many peninsula children: merci Madame and félicitations for your retirement.
I still call my mom when I want some advice, have news to share, or just need to feel a little extra support. She is my unwavering cheerleader. We chatted this morning when I was procrastinating about writing this column. Her advice: “just get on with it!” Thanks mum x
