An ode to maternal love – because we should never take it for granted

The love mothers feel for their children, is the most beautiful kind of love there is. Unconditional maternal love is often seen as something self-evident, but we should cherish it. Especially on Mother’s day. 

When a woman becomes a mother, they say it changes her life completely. She enters a new world, where exhaustion and trial go hand in hand with joy and intense love. Mothers around me have tried to explain it to me, but I can’t really understand it yet. Motherhood is probably something only mothers understand, so until then, I will probably keep wondering. Mothers love their children unconditionally, that’s the norm. If they don’t, we disapprove of it. We don’t really think about it, until there’s a lack of maternal love. But Mothers’ Day is the time of year to realise how amazing it is.

Hurting your mom’s feelings

Small, helpless children are easy to love. They exhaust you, they annoy you and there are times when you can’t stand to be around them, but they never hurt you on purpose. Nowadays, I have a strong connection with my mom, but when I was younger, my mom had a hard time handling me. Puberty was hard on me, so I was hard on my mom. I know I caused her pain then, by saying nasty things I knew would hurt her feelings. A lot of time has passed, and when I think of that time, I’m still amazed of how persistent my mom’s love for me was. If I ever meet someone who treats me the way I treated my mom then, I know I would get away from them in an instant.

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The ultimate love

I don’t think about my mom’s love all that often. Mothers’ unconditional love is something we take for granted – society does, children do, mothers themselves do. But maternal love is something we should cherish more. In every other relationship, there comes a time when you’ve had enough. Mothers are the only ones who can handle everything. Their pure love is the ultimate love. A love that can only be understood when felt.

Text: Joanne Wienen – Photo: Joshua Rodriguez