I remember in school, it could not be emphasised enough how remarkable my birth year was—1986. It was a time of solidarity, faith, and hope in Philippine history to fight against dictatorship, tyranny, and injustice.
As we face this pandemic, and encouraged to demonstrate the same values to win over this invisible war, at times I find myself worrying about the future. And being a mother of more than one child, aggravate my emotions.
It then dawned on me, that my mom faced the same struggle for years. Not only was she expecting in 1986, she was pregnant year after year since 1982 (one miscarriage, 4 children) until I was born. Note that the instability of the country then was greatly triggered by the declaration of martial law in 1972, and was only subdued during the EDSA revolution in 1986. And my father being in the military service, would only be home every couple of months or so.
I knew this story from when I was young, and often it would be tweaked to tease our mom about how melodramatic she was about the whole ordeal. But it now paints a different picture of courage and strength from my mother who had to go through those years with the physical, physiological, emotional, plus societal challenges pressed upon her by the situation.
Down the road when my children look back in time to remember 2020, I hope they realise, that I, together with their Dad, remained still, courageous, and hopeful. I want them to know that strength of character in trying times has always been our family’s core, and will always be who they are.
How do you feel about being a mom of more than one child? Share and let’s talk about your thoughts.