Grow Wild

When I was pregnant with Owett I made a poster for him and I wanted it to represent what he would be getting into. I thought of the phrase grow wild. The more I look back on the saying now I realize that it actually means so much more to me. Grow wild represents what it means to me to be a mum in this life's journey.

Rewinding the clock a little bit…when I was growing up a common activity for my family to do was to go hiking. We lived in an area that had lots of trails and places to explore. When I think of the word wild it takes me back to some of those areas. I think of an open field. Large pines, wildflowers trying to push through, big rock faces. Each individual life form having to survive and thrive in their environment. And sometimes thriving at different times. From the large steady pine to the struggling flower reaching to the sun to open its pedals. They have to go through different seasons throughout the year that bring challenges, from extreme cold to extreme heat. The wild is a vast and great knowledge source that teaches us about ourselves and those around us. We can have moments of pure joy with the warmth beating down upon us and then in contrast the earning for survival in colder months. Isn’t that what motherhood looks like sometimes? We have phases of euphoria and then in change, times of struggle. But isn’t that the point of having contrast; so we can tell what pure joy feels like. For this reason I have always loved the outdoors and have found so much peace. It finds a way to ground me and show that what we go through in life, happens all around us. Each element in nature has their specific environment to thrive in. You wouldn’t take a Joshua tree to Canada and expect it to survive just like taking other native species and dropping them in foreign environments. With that said I think we can give ourselves and others a little grace when we see them doing things that are different to us. We all have our unique habitat to grow in. I’m sure we can all agree, however, that sometimes we all feel a little crazy in our environments though.

Let’s face it, we are all a little bit wild. I googled synonyms for wild and feral, wilding, savage, untamed, unbroken, undomesticated, uncontrolled, and brute came up. I had a laugh, especially when I saw the word feral, because I’m sure we all have been there once or twice (or everyday) and it wasn’t just our kid looking that way. I can feel the insanity in my eyes some days but I can’t help it. Sometimes you have to let that crazy in and embrace it. But then I look back at the other words. They sunk in and really resonated with me. Unbroken. Untamed. Uncontrolled. We are those words. We are choosing to stand as mothers and women. We live in a time where mothers are being watched through a microscope. Every move is being watched, analyzed and primed for critics. I want to change the paradigm on this microscope and shape it into a spotlight. Where women come together to learn and listen to others. Where we learn and foster a community that supports rather than pushes down. When judgements are passed and we together can acknowledge differences. We are given our unique children to be their parent, nurturer and supporter. Wild, untamed, feral, bring it all. We need all of that to not only get through this journey but to thrive in it.

My goal is that we can laugh, cry and enjoy the wild together. I am excited to learn from other mums that are going through this; in whatever phase of motherhood they may be in. Although mothers have existed since the beginning of time, every mum was once a new mum and that time is completely unique. We are WILD.