6 Days and Counting

6 days until Mothers’ Day and you’ll be relieved to hear I won’t be teaching my three year-old how to scramble eggs for the main breakfast in bed event. Toast is fine, I just hope I don’t get any crumbs on the baby’s head. Does every child insist on nursing the moment their mothers prepare to eat or is it just me?

I often think the only thing mothers have in common is that we’re all women with children. That’s probably why it doesn’t take long to embroil a new mother in a passionate argument. The opportunity to stake out a side and defend it ferociously governs discussions about routine male circumcision, breastfeeding, sleep training, working in or outside the home, types of childcare and potty training methods, among other parenting topics.

There are as many definitions of motherhood as there are mothers. What is missing is respect for other women’s definitions of what motherhood means. A lot of energy is being wasted by arguing about what, exactly, is the “best” for children. Energy that, if re-directed, could actually be spent making a society that is friendly to mothers and children. Claiming and defending the moral highground is an exhausting and eternal struggle.
Re-directing wasted energy is the goal of Mothers Ought to Have Equal Rights. The American organization is dedicated to fighting the media-hyped divisions between women with children. The group hopes to foster inclusion and cooperation on issues that affect our children everywhere. Visit the site to find out how to support their campaign for a “ceasefire in the mommy wars.”