Mom, You Were Right!

Growing up, there's a lot of things that our moms tell us that are met with rolling eyes, folding of the arms, pouting, and maybe a good stomp out of the room. (Or was that just me?) But as we grow older, we realize our mothers are actually pretty wise individuals and if we had listened to them in the first place we might have saved ourselves from some heartbreak and trouble. So Mom, remember all those times growing up when you told me I would understand someday? Well, you were right. Here are some of the things you were right about:

1. Will it still matter in 10 years?

Whenever I would get mad, my mom would always ask me if it would still matter in 10 years. I always hated hearing it, and I usually would answer yes just to be stubborn, but guess what. All those things she asked me about? They don't matter today.

2. Don't let anything steal your joy!

Another little phrase that has a lot of truth. Your attitude is a choice. Don't let the little things get you down.

3. The "Red Apple Treatment"

Be kind to those who are mean to or mistreat you. You know, the whole "love your enemies" and "kill them with kindness" thing. 

4. Don't worry too much about the opinions of people. Chances are you won't keep in touch with them anyway.

At the time, middle and high school seem like such a big deal and the place where you meet all your life long friends. While this might be true for some people, it definitely was not true for me. I have a couple friends that I still keep in touch with from that time, but I wish I would not have worried so much about what other people thought of me.

5. You need to make priorities

I was the kid involved with everything. Horseback riding? Check. Volleyball? Check. Track? Check. Basketball? Check. Band? Check. But when I wanted  to do something new like dance or cheerleading, my mom would say "of course you can do that, but you would need to quit something else". I hated making the decision at the time, this really taught me about making priorities and about what I really enjoyed doing.

6. "I'm checking on you because I love you, not because I don't trust you"

I always hated when my mom insisted on calling to make sure where I was going really was where I said I was going. I dreamed of a mother who would trust me enough to never check up on me. I wanted her to be a "cool" mom. Now, I'm thankful that my mom loved me enough to care where I was. And let's  be honest. Once you get older you realize that the "cool" moms were really just "bad" moms. 

7. Don't pierce your belly button

Even though all the "cool" girls did it, mom wouldn't let me get mine done. I wonder why. I'm so glad she didn't! 

8. "You can cry out the door, but once you leave you're only allowed to look forward to the next adventure"

This little nugget is especially applicable to traveling. Whenever you leave somewhere, it's difficult. You are allowed to be sad until you leave, then you are only allowed to be happy about where you're going. Then you won't be busy comparing you past and present situations. This is one of my traveling mottos!

9. Always go to church

Growing up, no matter what we did on Saturday nights, we always had to get up for church on Sunday. I hated it (mom picking me up early from a birthday party because I had church? So embarrassing!) but it really established the habit. Now that we are traveling, we actively seek to find a good church everywhere we go, not just because we want to "go to church" but because we want to be connected to others and continue to develop our relationship with Christ. 

10. No short shorts!

Whenever I would go shopping and buy something, my mom would make me try it on for her before I was allowed to keep it. If it was to short/tight/revealing it went back to the store. At the time I thought my mom was determined to make me the biggest loser- but everyone shows their stomach, Mom! But now as an adult I'm really glad she wanted to protect me and teach me good clothing habits. 

 

11. Be a best friend

Mom has always taught me, from a young age, that people are more important than things. There's nothing more valuable that you can do with your time than invest it in people. This means being willing to show up, loving people in spite of themselves, and being willing to be the pursuer. My mom taught me how to be a best friend. 

12. Marriage is the union of two forgivers

As Mom likes to say, "Divorce is never an option- murder, yes, but divorce, never!" My parents have been married for 36 years, and while no one is perfect, growing up watching my parents has taught me so much. Marriage really is about forgiving. 

13. "Garbage in, garbage out!"

Ok this technically wasn't her phrase originally, but she said it all the time! Mom was very careful about what she let us watch on TV, movies, and listen to in music. It was so embarrassing when I wasn't allowed to see a popular movie or listen to the cool music, but Mom realized the truth of this little phrase: if the information you're consuming is bad (ie lots of cussing, nudity, etc) then in turn you will be affected with the things you say and do. 

14. Nothing good happens after midnight!

I always had to be home early because "nothing good happens after midnight". It's true, nothing good does happen after midnight. 

15. Someday, you'll want to be a mean mom too

"Mom, you're soo mean!!" Mom always told me that someday I would understand why she was so "mean" and that someday I would want to be a Mean Mom too. Well guess what? Someday if we have kids I do want to be a Mean Mom. And I hope that I'm half as good of a Mean Mom as my mom was because that would mean I would still be an amazing mom. 

My mom wasn't right about everything though, she did promise me that since I inherited her terrible teeth I would get her good eyes as well (she didn't need glasses until she was in her 50's). Well that promise was shattered in the fifth grade when I started complaining that I couldn't see the blackboard at school and I've worn glasses or contacts ever since. I'm not bitter at all! But hey, nobody's perfect. 

Happy Mother's Day to the best mom in the world!