smartmama wrote something to that effect on the postcard she sent me a few weeks ago after I had a mini-nervous breakdown about my dissertation. Here's the perfect postcard she sent:
So I have been doing some of those "hard things" the last couple of weeks during my blogging break:
1. I ran a half-marathon this morning. It wasn't pretty, but, as I kept telling myself as I ran uphill that last 2 miles, "I won't walk. Strong women do hard things."
2. I wrote 120 pages of my dissertation in one week. That's 2 of the 6 chapters. And that feat is courtesy of my mother, who answered my desperate plea to fly down and play Little People, make cookies, and paint pumpkins with my kids, plus scrub my blinds, mop my floors, make dinner, etc. etc. while I wrote for 14 hrs a day.
My mother is actually my role model for a strong woman. No, she doesn't run marathons and no, she hasn't written a dissertation. But she does do the truly hard things in life. She doesn't yell. I have hardly any memories of her raising her voice. (I left a pause there so you could recover from your disbelief before continuing to read.) She reads her scriptures every day, and (gasp!) I think she actually studies them. You know, that "feasting" thing we're always told we should do. She makes extra Thanksgiving pies to take to the elementary school teacher who, as she discovered during a parent-teacher conference, did not have time to make her own this year. These are really the hard things in life, for me, anyway. The things that require you to be strong when nobody is looking. So, thank you, Mom! For the clean house, the happy kids, the quality writing time, and the example you continue to set for me.
9 comments:
That's really cool of your mom. She sounds great!
How did your half go?
And way to go writing so much this week. :)
It sounds like you got your strength from your mother---she sounds amazing!
Congrats on all the pages written, and the half marathon. I think you are amazing too, way to go!
becky, my half went okay. i finished in 2 hrs, 7 min. not fabulous by any means, but i didn't train very well. and at least i didn't walk!
thanks, kierste!
WOW! A half marathon! You're the woman! And way to go on your disertaion! I'm so glad that your mom was able to come and help out. Quite frankly, I can't even keep my house clen, let alone tackle a project like a disertaion!
YAY for moms!! And yay for running a 1/2. Don't know if I'll ever get there.
C--I already knew you were a hard woman and that you could do strong things:) Really, though, since I met you in Jerus. I have been in awe of you: your brains and determination, your sense of humor, your love of Indigo Girls, your spirituality and, of course, your sense of style (thanks to that cute Meg Ryan hair cut that you were sporting back in '99). And, as always, I am IMPRESSED with all you do--the running (a half--you're kidding me!), the writing (this is the extent of my writing) and the mothering. Though I've never met your kids, I can just tell that they are fun and quirky and great--just like their mom. Way to go on all your accomplishments. And yeah for moms! I wish mine would come and do those same things so that I could just SLEEP and READ more (forget writing a dissertation!)
I second the comments!
You are such a great strong woman- I am proud of your accomplishment- you do so many great things. I love how our strong moms influence us to excel to become our own brand of strong women and excel at our own hard things!
And way to go on the half - i'd probably puke running 1 mile these days!!
aww, thanks for the compliments, everyone!
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