You Do Not Have to Be Your Mother

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE YOUR MOTHER unless she is who you want to be. You do not have to be your mother's mother or your mother's mother's mother or even your grandmother's mother on your father's side.

You may inherit their chins or their hips or their eyes, but you are not destined to become the women who came before you. You are not destined to live their lives.

So, if you inherit something, inherit their strength. If you inherit something, inherit their resilience, because the only person you are destined to become is the person YOU DECIDE to be. 

Twenty years ago, I opened an issue of People Magazine and found this Nike advertisement. I was struck not only by the message (quoted above), but also by the similarity of the ad's photo to one in my family photo album.


This post is for all the women who have decided 
to be--or not to be--their mothers.


Photos:
Top: Nike ad, People Magazine, 10-21-91
Middle: My mother's mother's mother
Bottom: Cheryl and Ruth