Nursing Mothers are Strong

                                                             (Wikimedia commons)

Today on my run, I was thinking about how grateful I am that I am healthy enough to run.  I really enjoy it, and it has been good for my self-confidence.  Also, it makes me feel strong.  Then my mind wandered to the births of my children.  I thought about how strong I needed to be to give birth to my babies.  Men are often thought of as strong, and women - not so much.  Women are seen as gentle (I want to be gentle!  God has helped me learn to be gentle!) However, you CAN be both strong and gentle!  Wasn’t Jesus? It takes great strength to attend to the needs of a baby 24 hours a day.  It takes strength to nurse a baby many, many times per day for months and years on end (against the advice of parenting books, friends and family) because your heart says this is how it should be.  It also takes great strength to be a Catholic woman who lives her life according to her faith even though the world doesn’t understand or approve.

Remember, dear fellow mom, you are strong!