What’s in a name? Well, a lot in my personal experience. My blog name has a connection to who I am and what I do. I purposely made it that way. And I’m not saying that my blog name is the best of them out there or one that will garner a lot of attention or even make an immediate connection for audiences to what my blog content is actually about. But what I will say is that “Degrees of Maternity” is meaningful to me and actually aligns with my overall brand outlook for this platform and any other platforms that I currently participate on or will participate on in the future.
And no, this blog’s focus is not on pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, or post-pregnancy content. Not about me, anyway. But, it’s quite possible that the topic may come up in the future when I’m relating information about my past new mommy experiences to some topic of discussion OR may be explored through the lives of others who are currently going through the baby prep stages. I’m past that phase of my motherly career. But, I am about the mothering factor — ALL THE WAY. I practically have been all my life. Even as a young child, I dreamed of being a mom and going through the joys of motherhood. Of course, at that age, the perspective of mothering was all peaches and cream. No hardships or challenges involved.
But, I have to admit, that once I actually became a mom, my natural instincts kicked in (along with what I’d learned from observation of other moms like my own and what I read from books). And it’s been the best role I’ve ever fulfilled in my entire life (even with the challenges that naturally come about when you’re a mom – no matter what phase of life you’re in).
I just love mothering. Even other peoples’ children. Even adults. It’s absolutely been inherently ingrained in every fiber of my being. Now, I’m not going to toot my own horn and say I’m one of the most exceptional moms out there. No, not at all. But, I am a mom who loves her God-given job and has cherished the opportunity to love on her children and on others.
As a matter of fact, let’s look at what the word “maternity” actually means and why I chose it as part of my blog name. I think I can best lead into how “maternity” suits my blog quite naturally by taking you waaaaaaaaaaay back to the fourth blog post I ever published here at Degrees of Maternity. It’s entitled “Meanings Matter“. I’ll even go ahead and give you the full post within this post, because it’s all of a whopping 346 words. (I tended to write shorter posts back in the day).
Here’s what I said back then, regarding how my blog name came into being:
In case you thought this blog was about pre- and post-pregnancy mommy and baby care, I totally get it but it’s not…not exclusively anyway. Needless to say, I’m well past that maternal stage; but before you go just yet, how about reading a little further? You might even check out some of my other posts to get an understanding of why I’m inviting you to join me on the Degrees of Maternity excursion. I’ll even promise to occasionally bring along some of my new mother anecdotes, since I actually do remember some of them. Deal?
The word “maternity” in my blog’s name encompasses a broader meaning that incorporates multiple stages, levels, or degrees. In fact, the pregnancy/new mom stage (which may have brought you to this blog in the first place) is just one of the many to follow and only partially reveals the complexities of all things maternity.
The American Heritage Dictionary: Second College Edition (1982), identifies def. 1 for “maternity” as “the state of being a mother; motherhood.” Def. 2 is noted as “the feelings or characteristics associated with being a mother; motherliness.” And yes, I still use my hardback dictionary that was given to me in my senior year of high school (it’s still an applicable resource, so don’t judge). Manually searching through its pages helps keep my alphabetical order skills intact in this all too technological age. Plus, that dictionary takes me back to my days of young adulthood, allowing me to reminisce every once in a while.
Anyway, let’s get back to the discussion at hand. I have no small task in trying to capture the many layers of motherhood. However, I’ll do my best to shed some light on this inexhaustible subject by unveiling some written glimpses into the life of one mother (me) and the knowledge gained, hiccups experienced, and triumphs enjoyed. I would venture to say that, although my experiences are mine to own, I have no doubt that Degrees of Maternity will provide material that you can glean from and commonalities that we both can share.
Now, in the post (above), I discussed that maternity simply means “motherhood” or “motherliness”. And, just as I’m going through the different degrees (or stages) of maternity (motherhood) in dealing with the three children I actually birthed (two of which are adults, therefore I’m an “adult” mom now), I can’t help but to fulfill a motherly role in my writing as well.
If you’ve had a chance to read any number of my blog posts over time, you’ve noticed that I do discuss matters of parenting, write on various topics around children, and focus on the parent-child relationship. I am a mother after all. But, I also create posts for people of all backgrounds (parent or not) that are intended to nurture, guide, encourage, and inspire. Essentially, my goal is to encourage people with an ear to hear the positive messaging that I lay out in the posts I deliver at the Degrees of Maternity blog.
And let me just tell you, encouragement can come in the form of the softie persuasion or in the tough love variety. But all of it’s meant to motivate others to be their best selves and to inch closer and closer to those goals that lead to true life improvement. That’s my overall motherly mission in real-life application and in any type of writing I do. I’m here to support your learning opportunities, cultivate your growth processes, and lead by example — all responsibilities that a motherly-natured individual will happily take on, when seeking the best outcomes for those who are in her sphere of influence.
So, I just wanted to cut in to today’s regular programming with this important message about my blog’s name, a message that needed to be brought out again (especially to those new to my blog). My hope is that you can clearly see why the words “Degrees of Maternity” are so reflective of who I am and what I intend to do on this platform.
And if you’re willing to be nurtured through the words in this blog, then you’ve come to the right place. Because, I’m all about taking on more and more layers and facets to this mothering thing. And you’re extremely vital to my “Degrees of Maternity” growth process, whether you knew it or not. But this blog isn’t all about me. You’re just as much a part of it as I am. So, I hope you’ll stick around so we can benefit from growing together.
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