Lessons I’ve learned as your mom.

“Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.”
- *Maya Angelou*

As a mom, you’re entrusted with protecting an irreplaceable treasure and cultivating in them a sense of wonder, kindness, resilience, joy, responsibility, empathy, courage, and determination. Those first years of motherhood? They’re overwhelming on a good day. The tiny miracle who fills your heart in ways you never imagined, the one you’d lay down your life for, can sometimes feel like a mini-dementor, draining the last reserves of your humanity through sleep deprivation, brain fog, and a completely transformed world that can feel terrifying.

But in the end, our little gems are the ones who teach us the most profound lessons in wonder, kindness, resilience, joy, responsibility, empathy, courage, and determination. Their rainbows brighten the dreariest of days. And bring happiness in the most challenging of moments.

Today, I celebrate fourteen years and nine months of motherhood. Here’s what I’ve learned as your mom:

Wonder

Tiny bugs, patterns on leaves, and the way stones glisten in sunlight create a sense of wonder. You loved them all. Those moments I shared with you remind me to pause and see life's beauty.

Love

There’s no love like a mother’s love for her child. It’s an endless, unbreakable force.

Faith

Faith is trusting completely in something. Through motherhood, I’ve found faith in love, endurance, courage, kindness, and my own instincts. I have faith in myself in ways I never imagined and faith in you that goes beyond words. Trusting yourself is powerful. It fuels decisions, growth, and accomplishments.

Patience

Slowing down, taking a breath, and focusing on what truly matters has taught me that helping someone feel supported, safe, and cared for is more important than being on time or checking off a task. Patience is kindness and empathy.

Forgiveness

Forgiveness in motherhood comes through empathy—understanding why things happen, identifying turning points, and learning to make amends while preventing future hurt. This lesson echoes in every instance where absolution is needed.

Selflessness

To mother is to give of yourself entirely—to nourish, build, and protect another. Yet it’s also about learning to step back, to say no, and to preserve your well-being for everyone’s benefit. True selflessness leads to preserving self, a lesson only fully learned by first giving wholly.

Giving to Others

As a mother, giving is about selfless acts of love and care. It can be an act of kindness, a moment of being present, or a gift without expectation. There’s nothing like watching the pure joy in your child’s face, and that happiness drives you to spread love and kindness further.

Fear

Nothing compares to the fear of being responsible for keeping alive the one person who means more to you than anything else. It’s often irrational but still undeniably real. The lesson is to acknowledge the fear without it consuming you while having the courage to let go.

Maturity

Motherhood has brought me more maturity than I could ever describe. From gray hairs to a patient heart, a deeper intuition and inner peace have emerged. Parenting brings a unique kind of growth and resilience that’s only understood once experienced. You can see it in others; It bears respect with solicitous eyes.

Priorities

Before motherhood, when only yourself is at the center, everything feels crucial. But as a mom, you see things in perspective. Deadlines don’t matter as much as witnessing a first step, and no social event is worth sacrificing a good night’s sleep. Goals are redefined as you start seeing life through a wider lens. Motherhood refocuses you on what truly matters.

Celebration

Celebrating others brings light to everyone’s soul. Making a favorite meal, cheering from the sidelines, or surprising someone with a meaningful gift becomes a cherished memory. These moments—like baking cookies together, attending family events, or bringing home a beloved pet—fill my heart with joy.

Autonomy

Teaching autonomy is one of the hardest lessons. Independence means freedom from control, and it’s tough when you’re tasked with keeping your treasured one safe. Yet, as a parent, you must also encourage resilience, courage, and independence. Letting go means allowing scraped knees and broken hearts, but also major successes, all of which are part of life’s journey. No lesson worth learning is ever learned solely by being told.

Cooking

The responsibility of cooking every day and deciding what’s for dinner can be draining. As a child, dinner just happened; as a parent, it’s daily work. Cooking is both a duty and an art that requires creativity, especially with a picky eater. I’ve learned that cooking can bring people together, but so can take-out. So, cooking has become a metaphor: embrace what nourishes you and release what drains you.

Learning to Say No

Motherhood demands energy; eventually, you must learn to say no to commitments, events, or extra tasks. Preserving your energy for what matters most becomes the priority. This lesson translates to every demand in life. Learning to say no allows you to say yes.

Listening to Experience

We hear that every lesson worth learning must be lived, but the wisdom of others can be invaluable. Every new mom is told how quickly their child will grow up. It’s impossible to fully understand at first, and hard to listen to repeatedly, but it’s one of life’s greatest truths - appreciate the moment. You’re fourteen years old today. At fourteen years a mom, I now listen more closely to what others have learned and use that insight to guide my decisions, valuing both the wisdom of experience and the voice of my heart.

Being your mom has shaped me in ways I never imagined, and each lesson adds a new layer of depth to the person I am as your mom and who I am as me. I look forward to watching you grow and develop. You’ve always been you - authentic, courageous, determined. Thank you for being my rainbow.

Happy 14th birthday to my tiny (now big) miracle.