Mothering I was fortunate; I had a wonderful mother for her lifetime. I don't begin to be the quality mother she was but, I tried. Even now, at my age, I would like to have, a mother.  It seems strange to say it but, it's true. There is nothing compares to a loving, caring, sharing, hugging, cuddling, run your fingers thru your hair, mother.  I had one just like that and lost her to Alzheimer's.  I have never met another, mother, like her. I am sure there are and, yes, every child needs a mother like I had. My mother was concerned about me in every way. Her goal was to see my sisters and myself grow up to be fine, upstanding, respectful, educated, decent human beings and, I think we three, have pretty much done just that. The world needs more mothers like I had but as the world has changed and as there is less concern that children are properly nurtured and loved, there are many less "really fine" mothers.  Good mothering is the basis for a good child. A mother can be a good mother in the here and now but there is so much outside influence of a detrimental type, mothering is challenged beyond its capacities. The world loses so much when it loses high quality mothering.  I wonder if the planet, as a whole, will ever see it again. Today, the television and the computer mother children in so much of our world. Poor programming and violent video games enter into the mix to confuse and to make what mothering we do, more difficult. Where will it all lead? The religious cry, come back to church and save yourself.  I cry, teach the children the basics while giving them the warmth and love of good parenting.  If the church would teach the basics to children, if children were willing to learn, yes, maybe church could be an answer.  But the basics, to me, must come from home. We have children who know enough to hack into someone's computer but who cannot wash a head of lettuce properly or prepare a salad. They don't learn how to keep and care for a house as they are too busy in the outside world living the good lives parents thought their children must have to be happy.  Parents see it as a duty to see their children have more in the way of things and free time with very little supervision so they (the children) can be "who they are" seeing it as better than they (the parent) had in childhood for themselves. Children work in our fast food restaurants and can't make change so now, to help them out and to save the credibility of the restaurant, everything is computerized telling the worker exactly how much change to count out.  Our children's minds are slowly eroding except in one area, they think the world owes them everything, now.  I blame most of the ills of the world, at this time, on poor parenting and a lack of good mothering.  It is important our children learn real respect for others and for themselves.  The world turns for us all and to be a world worth living in, respect is of key importance.  Respect is a byproduct of good nurturing and high quality, sharing, caring, love that comes from proper mothering. If you were a fortunate, with brains enough, common sense enough, soul enough to see and realize what the right and good way is to live and so, taught your own children and were a good example to others you come in contact with, displaying what it is to be a good upstanding person; you should be extremely proud of yourself.  You owe that much to yourself, the knowledge; you did what many in your shoes could not. You became a fine adult, one worthy of being addressed as a good mother, a fine person. You deserve the respect you get, every tiny "kind and good word of praise" that comes your way.    Muffy, aka RSBlain July 10, 2004 EMail RSBlain or, [email protected] See more pages by RSBlain, listed here.