Did you ever hear of Erma Bombeck? When I started blogging, a few people told me
my writing reminded them of her. (Do I
have to say it was my mother and mother-in-law?) ha!
Here is a snippet from her biography:”From 1965 to
1996, Erma Bombeck wrote over 4,000 newspaper columns chronicling the ordinary
life of a midwestern suburban housewife with broad, and sometimes eloquent
humor.”
Some of her quotes are hilarious. Totally relatable. But mostly, she was a beautiful writer. She wrote, “When God created mothers.” And
“If I had my life to live over.” She was
so funny too. She said and I quote, “Seize the moment. Remember all
those women on the 'Titanic' who waved off the dessert cart.” Although I probably wouldn’t have waved it
off. Actually, I definitely wouldn’t have waved it off. I’m a sucker for the sweets.
I wish she lived now, in my time.
Here is a link to her quotes.
As moms, we all get it. We can sympathize and empathize for the most part. I cannot judge that mom and her poor
little girl, especially when I watched her yell, “STOP IT,” very LOUDLY, a couple of
times in a row. Ooohhh…bad place
mommy. Not a good look. AND…it didn’t work. The poor little 4 year old girl,
would.not.stop.crying. Look, I don’t
know what happens behind closed doors.
Maybe she is just the worst child in the world and the mother is at her
wits end. Then, I feel bad for both of
them. I know what it feels like to be at
your wits end and it doesn’t feel good.
Maybe she was there, having a bad moment, in front of a crowd of people. Poor timing. Maybe she had no filter. Whatever the case, it reminded me of one of
Erma Bombeck’s quotes.
At that
moment, the child was acting up. She
wouldn’t listen. She wouldn’t stop
crying. Maybe yelling and shaking wasn’t
the answer; just an opinion from an onlooker.
Maybe the child needed attention?
Maybe she needed love? Hugs? Maybe that would calm her down? More of those things. Perhaps?
Couldn’t hurt to try, right? If a certain tactic isn't working, try another.
I thought about that mom and the Erma Bombeck quote
when my daughter wouldn’t eat her vegetables last night. AND…it drives me ‘smoke out of the ears’
crazy.
My face was getting red, my voice
was starting to raise..Up Up Up. But
then, who wants to look like that mother?
Not me. I don’t want to look
overwhelmed, short-tempered…dare I say it…mean!
I thought about it at the pool today when she
wouldn’t give the dolphin floatie back to the little boy it belonged to. I didn’t get upset, I talked to her, took her
away from the situation and she was fine.
I feel like at times, the child acts up to get the parent riled up. And it works, well. Other times however, the child needs strict
discipline and raised voices. Who am I
to say what works best for your child. I
can’t because I’m not in the situation.
I just know that it doesn’t always work well with my child and that is where
I’m coming from. It doesn’t look like it
was working for that mom either.
My 3 year old is a happy kid. As long as I’m showing her lots of love and
attention, she is also very well behaved.
There is something to be said for that.
And the truth is, I feel like such a better mom when I can keep my cool,
explain and come from a place of love. I
know there are times that I have to be strict and discipline the crap out of my
kids. But, there are also times that I
can remain cool, calm, and collected. I
hope I can remember that mother and Erma Bombeck’s quote when the %hit hits the
fan. We only get one shot at this. And, we shouldn’t have to ask our children
for forgiveness down the road, so let’s get it right.
I hope you can remember that quote when you are
feeling overwhelmed. And maybe you will
message me or email me and tell me that you remembered that quote when you felt
like losing it. Hopefully we can
remember it as the years pass by. Maybe
then, we will look back at our grown children and be able to say, “I got it
right.”
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