I am so very grateful to have grown up when I did. I lived in a time where we kids could take off for hours and our moms and dads wouldn’t worry. Of course we checked in every now and then, and we were mostly in earshot of mom.
We never hesitated to bring our friends into our home and mom would fix us all something to snack on, we had fresh baked cookies waiting for us when we came home from school, and a good sack lunch when we went in the morning.
The neighborhood moms didn’t hesitate to discipline any of the neighborhood kids if they got out of hand, it was a given.
Now was it all Shangri-La? No…. but what mom did was to make sure that we played fair, were honest, and were good kids. I know…. yet I still do my best to make her proud of me. I have siblings that make sure we show appreciation to our parents, especially our mother. Is she perfect? When we are children we always think of our mothers this way.
So what makes a mother the fountain of knowledge, the one that nurses us to health that listens to our problems that consoles us when loves tramples our hearts? “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” states, “Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.” 1 A good nurturer carries power and influence. The Latin word nutrire, from which the English word nurture originates, means “to suckle or nourish,” or, in the full interpretation, “to feed, foster, care for, or rear.” True power is found in the hands of a worthy nurturer, especially at mealtimes. Mothers, who are “primarily responsible for the nurture of their children,” can be a powerful force for strengthening families when they use mealtimes to gather loved ones. They follow the example of the Savior to calm, teach, and help their families remember important things as they feed, cultivate, educate, and rear at the consecrated tables in their homes.
I have been very fortunate to have the mother I have. She has taught me many very simple and complex things. How to tie a shoelace, how to write words, to be accountable for my actions…to color, to cook, to work and to read among many.
My best friends mom, growing up in 1st ward, was a great example of mom to me. In fact I called her mom. It is a term of endearment, and many women, regardless of whether they have children or not, have this term bestowed upon them. Because these women take the time to nurture, listen and guide us.
There are many women that are not my mother that have profound influence on my life. My mother-in-law has shown me what Mary the mother of Christ showed, that you could show forth love and compassion after you lose a loved one. The same with my sister as she lost a son. Or a daughter-in-law that cares for three kids while their dad is far away. Think of all the pioneer mothers that lost loved ones as they forever journeyed westward. They all have persevered. Can you imagine the anguish that Eve felt as a son destroyed another son, and yet went on? Christ like love.
Mothers have the capacity to forgive like no others. To listen, to heal, to give comfort to their “children”. I would venture to say that all of another, or us, at one time have had love shown forth to us by a woman that was not our mother.
From the Teachings of Joseph F. Smith
A mother’s influence extends from generation to generation.
He goes on to say……….How I love and cherish true motherhood! Nothing beneath the celestial kingdom can surpass my deathless love for the sweet, true, noble, soul who gave me birth—my own, own, mother! O she was good! She was true! She was pure! She was indeed a Saint! A royal daughter of God! To her I owe my very existence as also my success in life, coupled with the favor and mercy of God! 2
As a rule the mothers in Zion, the mothers of Israel, are the very best women that live in the world, the best that can be found anywhere. … The good influence that a good mother exercises over her children is like leaven cast into the measure of meal, that will leaven the whole lump; and as far as her influence extends, not only to her own children, but to the associates of her children, it is felt, and good is the result accomplished by it.
And, sisters, you do not know how far your influence extends. A mother that is successful in raising a good boy, or girl, to imitate her example and to follow her precepts through life, sows the seeds of virtue, honor and integrity and of righteousness in their hearts that will be felt through all their career in life; and wherever that boy or girl goes, as man or woman, in whatever society they mingle, the good effects of the example of that mother upon them will be felt; and it will never die, because it will extend from them to their children from generation to generation. And especially do we hope for this in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 3
Motherhood lies at the foundation of happiness in the home, and of prosperity in the nation. God has laid upon men and women very sacred obligations with respect to motherhood. 5
I think that the best mothers in the world should be found, and consistently found, among the Latter-day Saints. I believe the best wives in all the world are found among the Latter-day Saints. I do not know of any other women in the world that have the same conception of wifehood and motherhood that the Latter-day Saints possess. Our associations are not exclusively intended for this life. … We live for time and for eternity. We form associations and relations for time and all eternity. Our affections and our desires are found fitted and prepared to endure not only throughout the temporal or mortal life, but through all eternity. 6
In the home the mother is the principal disciplinarian in early child life, and her influence and discipline determine in a great measure the ability of her children to assume in manhood and womanhood the larger governments in church and state. 10
I most sincerely hope that the mothers of Israel will guard very zealously and very carefully the lives of their daughters and of their sons. I would if I had it in my power make it possible for all mothers to have the joy and the unspeakable satisfaction of rearing their sons and their daughters above the reproach of men and above the power of sin. 11
I look upon these mothers in Zion, who have been endowed with the gift of the Holy Ghost, who have been born again, … the daughters of Israel have been born of the water and of the Spirit, and they have been endowed with the gift of the Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands of those who had authority to convey that power and that gift to the daughters of Zion, as well as to the sons of Zion. I believe that every mother has the right to … know what to do in her family and in her sphere, over her children, in their guidance and direction; and that mother and every mother possessing that spirit has the gift of revelation, the gift of inspiration and the gift of knowledge, which is the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of discernment, a gift of God to them, to govern their households and lead their children in the path of righteousness and truth. 17
I think of my sweet wife, the mother of our children when I read these words. The countless hours on bended knee and immersed in scripture in their behalf. For good and bad. Giving thanks and seeking inspiration..
In an excerpt from our recent conference Elder Bradley Foster of the Seventy had this to say about mothers
Brothers and sisters, in a world where everyone is granted agency, some of our loved ones may stray for a season. But we can never give up. We must always go back for them—we must never stop trying. Our prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, has issued a plea for us to go rescue those of our loved ones who may be lost. With the help of priesthood leaders, parents must continue to go back and find their lost ones, assuring them there will always be a “home” within the family and the Church, waiting for their return. We never know when a heart may be turned. We never know when a soul may be weary and worn out by the world. When that happens, it seems our children almost always turn first toward Mother, with emotions like those expressed in a poem by Elizabeth Akers Allen:
Backward, flow backward, O tide of the years!
I am so weary of toil and of tears, …
Tired of the hollow, the base, the untrue,
Mother, O mother, my heart calls for you! …
Over my heart, in the days that are flown,
No love like mother-love ever has shone; …
None like a mother can charm away pain
From the sick soul and the world-weary brain.
Slumber’s soft calms o’er my heavy lids creep;
Rock me to sleep, mother, rock me to sleep!
Perhaps the reason we respond so universally to our mothers’ love is because it typifies the love of our Savior. As President Joseph F. Smith said, “The love of a true mother comes nearer [to] being like the love of God than any other kind of love” (“The Love of Mother,” Improvement Era, Jan. 1910, 278).
As in all things, the Savior set the perfect example in the love He showed for His earthly mother. In the final, most pivotal moment of His mortal life—after the anguish of Gethsemane, the mock trial, the crown of thorns, the heavy cross to which He was brutally nailed—Jesus looked down from the cross and saw His mother, Mary, who had come to be with her Son. His final act of love before He died was to ensure that His mother would be cared for, saying to His disciple, “Behold thy mother!” And from that point on the disciple took her unto his home. As the scriptures say, then Jesus knew that “all things were now accomplished,” and He bowed His head and died (see John 19:27–28, 30).
Cherish and embrace, or call, your sweet mother if you are fortunate to still have her on this earth. If not, remember her embrace, her love for you, and cherish those memories and share them with those around you.
Bless you dear sweet sisters for the sweet mothers you are. The sacred influence you have upon those around you, especially children. Listen to the Spirit, guide and comfort, do not hesitate to listen. As a woman in Zion you can have profound effect on those around you. Be a mother in our ward, our stake your family and for eternity…
