7 Stories: Oh, Mom! (suggested theme)

Some thoughts to get you thinking about the month’s suggested theme, “Oh Mom” (or is, OH MOMMM!”)

Moms, stepmoms, the moms who adopt us or the ones that we adopt, fairy godmothers, all play many roles in our life – birth, advocate, motivator, friend, disciplinarian. Whether sainted or evil or somewhere in between, mothers leave a mark on their children. I was lucky to be able to travel with my mother and father and on these trips our relationship changed from adult-child to adult-adult (at least for the duration of our travels.) We travelled overseas for 3 weeks at a time. The rules were – carry-on luggage only, mix/match and nothing requiring ironing/dry cleaning. On a trip to England, my father was hospitalized delaying our return to the States by several weeks. While my father was in the hospital, my mother had the daily routine of getting to the hospital for visiting hours, leave for lunch, return to the hospital for the afternoon/evening hours. We were staying within walking distance of the hospital and most days we would walk to/from. After a few days, as we walked we would decide where we would have our lunch or evening meal. One afternoon when we went to lunch, my mother decided that she needed a new nightgown so we went to Mark’s and Spencer’s. As we wandered through the ladies’ loungewear, I noticed a tag on one that proclaimed it a “no iron nightgown”. The thought of ironing a nightgown, was not something I would have ever thought of doing. I shared it with her, extolling it’s benefits as being cotton, lightweight and LOOK! It doesn’t require ironing!” Her response was to burst out laughing—the first bit of laughter in what had been a trying week. She bought the nightgown. We spent another week in London before my father was healthy enough to leave the hospital and fly home. As we waited to fly out of Heathrow, we shared another laugh about her souvenir no-iron nightgown.

Do you have a story to tell? Whether it is about your mom or about being a mom, the challenges, the joys, the triumphs of mother or motherhood, we would love to hear it. Shared stories bring us together and build community.

We want to hear your stories! We welcome experienced storytellers and first timers.

No story of your own? Come to 7 Stories and listen to our story tellers fill the room with “Oh Mom” (or OHH MOMMM!!)

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Rules & Guidelines for storytelling:

• Stories must be true.
  Stories must take 7 minutes or less to tell.
  Stories must be TOLD, not READ.

If you want help with your story, send us an email. We recommend you start recording yourself and practicing with a friend.

See you there!