For as long as I can remember I’ve always had a voice.
I’ve always had an opinion.
And generally speaking, I have always had goals.
The first time I remember vividly wanting to use my voice was the summer before my junior year of high school.
Here, let me set the stage…
Who: My best friend and I
Where: Sleepover at my house
What: Plans of our not-so-distant future
Why: Because we were nearly grown-ups
The Perfect Plan: A Short Story
It was a star-filled summer night as my best friend and I discussed our somewhat far-fetched plans… (Although in our 16-year-old minds, our plans were in no way far-fetched!)
We. Could. Do this! We were sure of it!
Because, well… we were nearly grown-ups!
- We both had our driver’s licenses (which opened us up to all sorts of new freedoms)
- We both had summer jobs as lifeguards (in our minds this made us rich!)
- AND we both were only two years away from high school graduation, this surely meant we were old enough to be out on our own! Right?
So all night long, we vehemently discussed our plans to have our own apartment by senior year of high school.
Are you laughing yet? Maybe I should restate that again for you:
So all night long, we vehemently discussed our plans
to have our own apartment by senior year of high school.
Really, it’s true! We honestly thought, if we planned enough, if we covered all our bases, if we showed our parents just HOW responsible we could be, that we might be able to use our voices to convince our parents that during our senior year of high school we could live together in our very own apartment.
I’ll admit, the night we came up with this plan we thought we were geniuses.
We talked about where we might rent. We discussed how we would carpool to school. We envisioned the freedom that our parents’ homes just didn’t seem to give us enough of at the time.
We were going to use our voices for the 1st time to make clear WHY we could do this and WHY our parents should let us do this.
My Best Friend and I just before our junior year Homecoming Dance.
A Good Lesson Learned (And an Even Better Story to Share!)
As you might have already guessed, this did not happen.
- My parents would never have allowed it regardless of how “responsible” I thought I was.
- Our “research” showed that we could never have afforded it. (We got a quick dose of reality regarding how much lifeguarding we would REALLY need to do to cover our expenses!)
- Most significantly, I think we were
terrifiedslightly scared. (Although we never admitted it, neither one of us was really ready to leave the safety and security of our families yet.)
SO… we did not get the freedom of “life on our own as high school seniors.”
(I know, you’re shocked!?)
Yet, the significance of this memory lies in the fact that this was the first time I recall feeling excited to advocate for myself and interested to really investigate (and possibly voice) my own needs and wants.
It was both an early life lesson in the importance of good research and also in knowing when to admit defeat when you might have been wrong.
Along with being a great (albeit slightly funny) story to share with you all!
A Powerful Tool: Our OWN Voice
Research, keeping an open mind, and listening to others’ stories are so important in helping us all continue to make the right decisions in parenting and in our own lives.
And it is because of this, that I am excited to announce a new addition to our Mothers Central Blog: our new MC Voices page!
What is MC Voices? MC Voices is meant to be a blog directory of our members who have blogs.
Additionally, the MC Voices page is meant to give our readers some new blog reading sources. Along with listing members’ blogs, there is also an area linking to our NAMC staff’s current favorite reads. (Which will be updated as we continue to locate stories we each connected with personally.)
- Do you have a blog?
- Are you a Mothers’ Center Member?
Then this page is for you! You can submit your blog URL and have it added to the MC Voices blog directory list for other mothers to read!
- Do you like to read blogs?
- Do you like to hear other mothers’ stories?
Then this page is also for you! As our blog directory list grows, come back to visit other Mothers’ Center moms’ personal blog pages and read their stories. Plus, you can visit our “Staff Picks” - where NAMC staff members share some of their current favorite online reads!
A parents “voice” - YOUR VOICE - is a powerful thing.
Up to this point, the Mothers Central blog has primarily featured my voice - and it still will. But really, all of us have important voices and important stories to share. And Mothers Central would like to help highlight other Mothers’ Center members’ stories and voices too! (Not a Mothers’ Center member yet? Find out how you can become one here.)
Don’t let your voice be limited by your own experiences. Dream big and do your research (like my 16-year-old, independence-seeking-self!)
And consider starting your story-seeking-research right here - at Mothers Central and the new MC Voices page.
What do you think? Did you ever have an unrealistic goal as a child or young adult? When was the first time you remember using your voice? What type of stories would you like to read about through our new MC Voices page?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Can I be a Mother’s Central Member? Does it have to have a local chapter?
Hi Missy! You can look here to see if there are any local Mothers’ Center chapters near your, OR you can join as an individual member. Visit our join tab on the NAMC website to learn more about the benefits and how to do this! There are many other benefits to membership as you’ll see!