The Battle for Your Kids

I went to my grandmother's house on Mother's Day. My mother made a comment about her third and youngest child only having two years of college left. To that, my grandmother responded, "You did good. You won the battle."

I laughed, but then I thought. It really is a battle. When you consider all the ugly forces that are coming after our children (drugs, alcohol, bad influences, bad people, etc.), it really is a battle to keep them on the narrow path toward success and safety.

I've only been a mom for about 11 months, so I've never really had a reason to think about this before. Now that I have my own little one, I'm so much more aware of the icky things in life. There is always someone or something waiting to snatch them up.

As much as I'd love to raise my daughter in a bubble, I know that isn't possible, so I'll have find another way to keep the scary things away.I look at my mother and all the steps she took to keep us away from bad influences: She kept TV watching to a minimum (though we would sneak at times), she was always aware of who we were around, and she made sure we went to Islamic events and services. She kept us in the library and always made sure we did our homework. If we didn't know how, she'd help us, sometimes for hours.

I've been blessed with a great mother who has definitely gone to battle for us. I plan to be the same way. I'm not the type that believes good mothering comes from pouring yourself completely into your children, leaving nothing for yourself, but I do believe it requires a concerted effort. The forces that work to sidetrack our children are putting in work, so how can I not?
Zara's Mommy,
Nadirah Angail
http://www.nadirahangail.com/