I am Supermom!

My kids often ask me, "Mom, if you could have any super power what would it be?" They always give me certain boundaries, however, such as: I can't have the 'power to have all powers, and I can't have something boring like "the power to take a nap whenever I want" (which is one I'd really like!). I usually rack my brain and almost always tell them I'd like to be able to fly.

Lately though, I've been thinking to myself that I'd really like to have the power of Disney's Elastigirl from The Incredibles. Here are some of the ways it would come in handy for me:

• When I finally find a sweater that I like at the mall and realize all the sizes that are bigger than extra-small are hung dang near the ceiling, I wouldn't have to wander around to find someone who could come and use the special hanger-grabbing, ten-foot pole thingy.
• When I'm at Mass during the school day with eleven Kindergarten and First Graders I could do things like; pass the children two pews up from me a tissue, get them to the right page in their prayer books, wake them up, tell them it's time to kneel, warn them to get their fingers out of there noses...all without leaving my pew!
• When my kids get into a bickering match while I'm driving in heavy traffic I could stretch one arm all the way to the back of the van and slap each one along side the head before they even knew what hit them.  They'd be so shocked that they'd bond in a shared moment of creepiness and the bickering would come to an end....forever!

Those are just a few ways Elastigirl's power would help me. Yes, that is the power I want. It's just so much more practical than flying...at least during this stage of my life.

In all seriousness, I have a friend who frequently calls me Supermom (Leah H!!). I usually brush off her flattery because, most days, I feel anything but super. One thing she said to me, at least five years back, however, has stuck with me to this day. After calling me 'Supermom' and me scoffing at the title, she said, 

"No, really. You know why you are Supermom? Because you get FIVE little kids to bed every night and FIVE little kids out of the house in the morning! That's quite the feat."

She said it with such genuine sincerity that the thought has never left me. Yes, they are older now and, in some ways, things have gotten easier, but she was right, I AM Supermom, dagnammit!  Every mom knows that simply getting out of the house is an enormous task.  Now, Leah is about to have her third child and she, too, is a Supermom, as are all moms that take on the task of raising adults. That's right, adults. We are not raising these little humans to be children, but respectful, caring, responsible adults...and that is super.

I might fly one day. Across the seas to far off lands....

But for now, I will find my power in....naps.

"Dinner can wait, just give me ten minutes....please?"

Charity Begins At Home

"And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity."
1 Corinthians 13:13

When I got the idea to spend my summer immersed in teaching my children the practice of virtue, I assumed, I would merely be reaffirming what they already knew and ensuring that is was practiced more regularly. The reality is: children are selfish human beings. They are born with original sin and struggle against its effects from the time they begin talking, sometimes earlier. It is nothing rare to find a toddler whose favorite word is "No!"

As soon as we embarked on our mission to practice a greater level of charity at home it seemed almost as if we got worse!! Isn't that how it always is? They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Well, I wasn't about to give up. I almost got discouraged thinking, what is it going to take to get my children to treat one another with true charity? I did realize, however, that it was the start of summer break, and a rainy start at that. We were together much more than ever and stuck in the house.

The first day of summer break, I was still in teacher mode and found myself planning a family meeting, white board, schedule and all. We said certain prayers focusing on charity and then began discussing ways we can practice charity toward: God, others, and ourselves. I let them come up with the answers and they did great. It was cute seeing Cecelia get into the spirit, raising her hand when she had something to say....and boy did they have something to say! They were completely involved and excited about our new venture.

The end of the next day we gathered together before bedtime and discussed how we did that day. Each one of them volunteered an apology to someone else, before I even suggested it. We ended the day singing Ubi Caritas, meaning Where There is Love. How idyllic that first week was! We kept up with the prayers, but the evening meetings have dwindled with the later summer bedtimes.

My children still fight, argue and insult. I would be a fool if I thought that would end completely. However, I do notice a slight shift toward a sense of camaraderie. Constant reminders throughout the day and forced apologies are a daily occurrence.

The biggest difference is that the thought is there. Am I being charitable? This question is amongst us in every interaction. Sometimes we are fortunate to think it before we act, sometimes after. But the idea is to strive to do better tomorrow than we did today, to do better in the next hour than we are doing right now. I have seen my children turn their bad attitudes around in seconds by deciding to "start over" from this moment on. I am happy with how things are going. It's not a goal with an end, at least not in this world, it's an ideal to strive for. 

The biggest factor that helps us improve is prayer. God will help us if we ask Him. He is bigger than any difficulty, and stronger than any weakness.

Cheers!

Gina.