The Genres of Motherhood

I have decided that mothers are a bit like books. Each mom and each book has her own genre.
In novels, the genres are mystery, romance, historical, fantasy, science fiction, comedy, and non-fiction. Each genre is unique and each has a place in our literary lexicon.

The genres of motherhood are a little bit different. Mothers can be:
Athletic
Healthy
Artistic
Educated
Cosmopolitan
Service-Oriented
Musical
Influential
And More...
What if a mystery tried to be historical romance? Not only would it be confusing to read, it wouldn't be any good! The same is true for mothers.

Sometimes I wish I was a different genre of mother. But I'm not.

So I need to stop comparing myself to others-- the mothers that I see in blogs or on Pinterest or in PTA groups or at church or the playground around me.

I can only be me. I am an educated mother. I love learning. I love reading. My children have been surrounded by good books and big ideas for their whole lives. I am not musical. I am not a leader. I struggle to find ways to serve people around me. I try to eat healthy and exercise but usually fail miserably in my attempts. I am not good at sports. I don't travel.  Does this make me a bad mother?

No. I do not need to be a book that embraces every genre imaginable. Think about that for a minute. A book like that would be unbearably long and impossible to read! I just need to be me. I am enough for my children. When I do this my daughters are freed to find their passions and become the genre of mother that each was meant to be.  And my son can be the father he was born to be as well.
So what about you?
Are you an open book?
Have you discovered your genre?
And have you let go of all the other titles to be the book that you were meant to be? Pin It