Yesterday was Mother's Day. I am not a mother, but each year on that day I find many strangers wishing me a happy Mother's Day. They see this middle-aged woman and assume I must be a mother, even though I have remained child-free by choice.
Yesterday was no different. I had stopped into a convenience store, and the young man behind the counter wished me a happy Mother's Day. I decided to have some fun with it. So I replied, "Happy Mother's Day to you, too!"
He got a confused look on his face. So I smiled warmly, looked him in the eye, winked, and said, "I'm not a mother either."
Then he got a look of pity on his face and said, "I'm so sorry."
I replied, "No need. It was my decision."
Then I sensed a light bulb suddenly flashing inside his head. And I think a lesson was learned.
As I was leaving, I heard him greet the women who had been in line behind me.
He said to her, "It's mother's Day. Are you a mom?"
She said, "Yes."
He said, "Then happy Mother's Day!"
I hope the lesson sticks.
We can all be Mothers & Fathers whether or not we have children of our own; every time we explain something to a child or set an example for one; we are partaking in the growth of that child.
ReplyDeleteI hope this lesson sticks........
@dragonaught77: But some of us want no part of it. (See above re: child-free by choice.) I've never had any desire to "partake in the growth of a child". So please stop trying to twist words in order to turn me into a mother figure. It's not my thing.
ReplyDeleteI hope this lesson sticks.... ;-)