A Mother’s Day Reflection from the Isle of Skye

The cycle of life has tied us inextricably to our Mothers. I experienced this ‘knowing’ as I clung to my mom as a little one and I experienced it again later in life as my little one held tightly to me- an age old story that laughs in the face of Adam’s fictionalized rib.

This physical bond dissipates over time, but becomes something different, maybe deeper- parallel planes of receiving and giving life. We are fully instinctual, but our modern day conceptualization of motherhood is bursting beyond that unconscious process. We are more than birthing and rearing machines. We are creators, innovators and shape shifters.

I’m writing these words from a remote cabin in Isle of Skye. This is a wild and rugged place in northern Scotland. The view from my Airbnb’s floor-to-ceiling windows look out at endless meadows with a herd of sheep who spend the day grazing as their newly born lambs frolic around them. Each lamb sticks close to their Mother- following, watching and feeding- so sweetly dependant. Their Mothers are calm, assertive and attentive- achingly devoted. I could watch these interactions all day!