I Hurt Too Much to Attend Church Until Wonderful Friends Gave Me Strength

Mother’s Day does not have to hurt

Photo by Joshua Eckstein on Unsplash.

Every year, I struggled during the worship service. I felt alienated, stranded on an island of sentimentality, awash with emotion.

I wondered what on earth I was doing there. Some years I couldn’t take it, and I stayed away from Church. To be childless and unmarried was a double handicap.

The Church, of all places, should be inclusive of races, status, and ages, and yet, it can make confident professional women feel marginalized on Mother’s Day.

The stigma of being middle-aged and single is slowly easing in society. In the Church, where many leadership roles are barred, unmarried, middle-aged women often struggle to find a meaningful place.

She is in a catch 22 situation. She needs to wait on God for her mate, but if she does not marry when young, there is something wrong. No one declares that it just might be God’s will. A life of singleness is rarely discussed as an option. There’s a feeling of commiseration that the lady has missed the boat.

So Mother’s Day is another opportunity to remind her of what she is missing.

Who is a mother?