hundredyearsofmotherhood.com

Welcome to the "hundred years of motherhood" project

Collecting wisdom and years of lived experiences from mothers

The journey of the "100 years of motherhood" project started with my experience of returning to work after the birth of my daughter. It was a journey that brought with it a rollercoaster of emotions, a lot of anxiety, a hint of excitement, and a newborn's resolve to teach me how to be the mom she needs. Little did I know that this transition would redefine my identify, and that the challenges I encountered would serve as catalysts for my personal growth.

When I made the decision to return to work, the thought of parting from my precious little girl for those 8 hours made my heart wrench. This was my first hurdle — balancing my old self that wanted to save the world with this new version that only wanted to sit in the rocking chair, holding this wonderful little baby. Along with this new identity came came a slew of unexpected descriptors that were used to refer to me. A friend casually called me 'a working mother' and I wondered why no one had referred to my husband as a working father. In another instance, a family member referred to me as a career woman and I once again wondered why I had never come across the term 'career man'. This was followed by a subtle assumption that I might now want to “slow down” and motherhood was a constant undercurrent in most of my interactions. While I am still learning to cope with some of these new ways in which I am being seen, these experiences have brough with them a lot of personal growth. Most importantly, the last few months have taught me empathy, particularly for all those who experience parenthood in all its wonderful forms.

As my daughter approaches her second year, I've gained those many years of mothering experience, a treasure so valuable that I want to proudly showcase it on my resume. I've learned to be patient, to communicate with grit, and develop new skills with the resolve of a infant. All of this learning has transpired in just the last couple of years. Imagine the wealth of insights we could amass if we pooled together the wisdom from many mothers totaling to a 100 years of motherhood. These are the narratives we need to hear. We need to start seeing clearly the transferrable skills we gain as mothers that can empower us to handle challenging projects, build better workplace relationships, and drive better results for the people and communities that we serve.

I am now extending an invitation to all those who mother to join me in crafting a repository of our collective experiences, coping strategies, and hard-earned wisdom. If you would like to participate in this project, please send an email to info@hundredyearsofmotherhood.com.