And They Call Me Mum... Janis Lim is a mother of two young boys, Jeremiah and Josiah. In this article, she shares the ups and downs of a stay-home mother and an important lesson she learnt from experienced parents on what it means to simply enjoy her children and to see God’s hands even in the mundane daily routine.
“If you’re not going to listen, then don’t talk to me!” I shouted at the older of my two boys. I had asked him to clean up, while he kept conjuring excuses not to. I was tired and he was trying my patience. I plopped down on the sofa with Josiah, my younger one, while big brother Jeremiah hopped onto his bike and started cycling around. I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my arm. “Ouch! Oh no, there’s blood!” I exclaimed. Josiah had scratched a healing wound on my arm. Jeremiah literally jumped off his bike and came rushing towards me. He took a quick glance at the wound, then turned to look at me with eyes filled with so much tenderness that I could feel it. I could sense he wanted to ask if I was alright but the words never came. Then it struck me - I had told him not to talk to me! Yet Jeremiah came running to me when he knew I had hurt myself. My heart all but melted. My five-year-old son loves me. Aren’t moments like these what all mummies yearn for? Looking back on the 5 years we spent bringing him up, I must admit it has been a very tough journey. Tender and profound moments like these are few and far between. Being a stay-home mum, I am often asked how it is like. My quick reply is, “90% pain, 10% joy”, often to the bewilderment of the person asking! I would hasten to add that the 10% joy is worth the 90% pain. Parenting is a tough journey. The bible gives very broad guidelines on parenting. One of my most cherished verses is from Proverbs 22:6: “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it”. I was hungry for what more experienced parents could teach me. My favourite question these days is, “Do you have any advice for me on how to bring up my children?” Of the many pieces of wise advice I have been given, two have shaped my manner of parenting significantly. The first was from a man of God who is also a much sought-after preacher of the Word, Reverend Edmund Chan. Pointing to his teenage daughter next to him, he said simply: “Enjoy them. They grow up so quickly.” His response took me by surprise. Enjoy? The lack of sleep, the constant diaper-changing and the terrible twos? Was he kidding? I was to hear the same piece of advice many times again. I used to dread the long days filled with what seemed like routine and mundane chores. I wished my boys would grow up quickly. Reverend Chan’s advice set me thinking: if godly parents who have walked this same path of parenthood tell me to enjoy
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