3 Lessons from My Mother, Marietha

On November 2nd 2021, I published an article on my blog titled 3 values I was reminded of by 41 orphans. Among other things, that article was really about how I was adjusting to losing my only living parent, my mother. Simply put, I wasn’t adjusting at all and in fact, I’m not sure I ever fully will. I will continue to deeply feel her absence for the rest of my life.

Lately, as I’ve learnt to gradually accept what I consider to be the greatest loss of my life to date, I’ve noticed that every time I think of my mother (which is a lot), I’ve started to smile. I think of how she used to encourage me, how she held me, how she made me laugh and it all makes me feel very lucky to have been chosen to be her daughter. She, Marietha, shaped me into the person I am today. I am because she was.

The risk of great love is devastating pain but as is the case with many other wounds, they all eventually turn into scars. June 28th 2022 will mark 1 year since my mother died and to honour her memory, I wanted to reflect on her life and her journey on earth. The goal of this article is to share with my audience, a few things I learnt from my mother. Some of you met her in person and for many others, this article will be the only way for you to ever know what she was like. She was a wonderful human being and I hope that her personality and character will in some shape or form add value to your lives too.

1. Humility

“True humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less.” — C. S. Lewis

I wouldn’t be doing my mother justice if I didn’t start this list off with what I think was her greatest strength: humility. I’ve met a lot of people in my life, from all backgrounds, cultures, and corners of the world and I can confidently say that so far, I haven’t met anyone more humble than my mother. She wasn’t passive, or submissive, or insecure. On the contrary, she was very confident and extremely self aware. She just never really prioritised egos, hers and that of others.

Many of us, myself included sometimes struggle with humility because we are too concerned with our own sense of self-importance. Our egos need to be stroked from time to time and our pride matters more to us than it should. Today, in honour of my mother, I’d like to invite us…