REFLECTIONS ON MOTHER'S DAY 2024

It's Mother's Day today. Wila painted me a card at school on Friday. It read 'Happy Mother's Day,' she even signed her name, all by herself (they're learning to write their names at school). She misspelled it a bit; it read 'WLiA.' She was very proud of her work, she told me it had glitter, and who doesn't love glitter? Lol. It said I was a superhero. I thought it was the sweetest thing. I don't think she really understands what that means right now, but she's been wishing me a happy Mother's Day all weekend and telling me I'm a superhero. I've always thought of MY mum as a superhero. I think she is. She's one of the smartest, most hardworking, most determined, toughest, and yet still kindest people I know. In the 3 years I've been a mum though, I've never really considered Mother's Day so much a celebration of me as a mum, more so a celebration of my mums (my mum has 8 sisters so I've got 9 mums 😁). I don't know why, or perhaps I do, but it would take a whole chapter to unpack. This year however, I have been particularly excited about Mother's Day because I had some ideas about what we could do at WilaWane Store. It was only yesterday, however, that I started to consider what today means to me personally. I would like to come here and just say motherhood is the best thing that ever happened to me, well it is, but some days it doesn't feel that way. When my 18-month-old is screaming like a banshee and twisting around because she doesn't want to change her diaper, and she ultimately smears a streak of poop on my favorite jeans 😂. Or when my 3-year-old asks at almost midnight for a snack, and you drag yourself to make her something, and she takes one bite and decides she's full 😏. When you have a sick toddler and you've prayed and given them their meds, and yet they're still sick, and you have to watch them struggle to breathe because they're so stuffy. On days when you need to work, but your toddler just wants to play with you, and you have to tell them mummy is working, and you're riddled with an overwhelming guilt that you are failing your child. So many instances, sometimes really trivial and other times genuinely really hard, that make me think this being a mummy thing is overwhelming, and the truth is, sometimes it is for me. But on the flip side, is the recognition that motherhood is the most valuable, most fulfilling adventure I've ever been on. I've never really intentionally considered how motherhood has changed me, but oh how it has. The realization that God has entrusted me with the responsibility of stewarding his children is both scary and an honour. I have been exposed to the purest form of love, the real definition of unconditional. To think two little people think that with all my flaws, I'm the moon and the stars and the sun - is out of this world. It's easy to feel like being a mum, in a sense, 'clips your wings,' but yesterday I had such a profound realization that being a mum gave me wings. I have found deeper purpose, deeper meaning in the things I do. My desire to be the best mum to my children has pushed me to learn more than I ever had. The need to provide them with the best life possible has made me work harder than I ever have. My children inspire me every day, to keep going, to keep pushing and honestly some days, to keep living. My journey as a mum has been an education, as they have grown, I have grown. I understand my own mothers better now, and I have a more profound appreciation of who they are to me and the hardships they've had to overcome. Yesterday, as I sat at the Independent Schools Expo, amazed at how remarkable it was that me, Kayanda, was in that space representing WilaWane Store, it dawned on me how WilaWane Store, my third baby, is the manifestation of my motherhood journey 🥹. So on this Mother's Day, I have decided I will show myself some grace and take a moment to appreciate myself as a mother. I don't always get it right, but I am doing some things right, and I am grateful to God for this gift. To all mothers and mother figures, Happy Mother's Day to you. You are doing great, God loves you, and I'm rooting for you.