The one about……Mothering

Here in the UK it’s Mothering Sunday, a day traditionally when servants had time off to travel back to visit home, their mother church and their families. The boom in commercialisation of ‘ Mother’s Day’ shines a spotlight on anyone who has a difficult, broken or non- existent relationship with their mother; for those who yearn to mother, grieve for dead mothers, mother alone or fulfill the roles of both mother and father.

Mothering is an elastic term. Some mother their friends, their neighbours or even their own parents as they become older and less independent. I have a friend who has mothered hundreds of teenagers over the years in her professional role in schools despite not having any children of her own. It started me thinking about what are the standout qualities of mothering (and I’m talking not just for women; anyone can mother) and what tiny steps could we all take to move closer towards them?