Pour Your Heart Out: What a Mom Teaches

If you have never visited Pour Your Heart Out before, see THIS post for more information- but it's personal- it's what YOU think is pouring your heart out. Please grab the PYHO button or link back in your post if you are participating.

Again, just a brief reminder that everyone linking is pouring their hearts out and we should all be respectful in our comments. ;)

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Mother's Day is this Sunday!

Usually, around this time of year, you read a lot of sweet posts about all that a mom has done for someone.

But, for some of us, we took what we learned from our moms and used it as an example of what not to be.

My mother believed that boys' needs should always come ahead of girls'. What they wanted to do, getting served meals, their wants ruled.

And so I learned to stand up for myself and say hey, I'm important, too.

My mother weighed herself every day and would fast if she had gained even a pound.

And so I learned that the numbers on a scale aren't important: I go by the feel of my clothes.

My mother thought it was okay to lie and backstab to get her way, all in the name of "wanting what is best for someone."

And so I learned that my integrity is much more important than getting my way.

My mother would lie and say one of her ideas came from someone else because she was afraid that someone wouldn't like her idea.

And so I learned to be proud of my own ideas and be willing to voice them.

My mother gossips about everyone and everything to everyone she talks to.

And so I learned that secrets are for keeping and to be careful who I share what with.

My mother judges other's choices based on how they affect her, not looking at why the decisons are being made.

And so I learned that not everything is about me and I need to see others' actions for what they are, not as a personal attack on me.

My mother's love has always been conditional and she's told me at different points in my life that I'm not her daughter any more.

And so I learned that a mother's love should be unconditional and never-ending.

You see, I could let the example that my mother gave me negatively affect me. I could let her drag me down.  I could use her as an excuse for bad behavior.

But, instead, I choose to let her serve as an example of how not to be.


Before you judge: A Glass of Other People's Problems