The Hall Pass
As you begin the parenting journey you often find yourself unprepared for your job as a mother. However, anyone who has been down the path knows, with a little patience and a lot of faith, answers are revealed to you in time. And while most mothers secretly dream about “taking the hall pass,” few ever do.
Honestly, at various times over the last 19 years I have been completely surprised by the depth of joy and fear I’ve experienced as a parent and really loved the statement below by my friend Denise Bunning:
“I feel very spiritual. I am exactly on the path I was meant to be on. I was meant to have the children I have, one with food allergies and asthma, and one with food allergies and EoE.”
Denise goes on to recount the day her oldest son went into anaphylactic shock at 6 months of age after ingesting just one sip of a milk based formula, closely followed by her second son’s diagnosis – Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) – an even more rare and serious digestive disease.
Her statement was particularly poignant to me because despite our different parenting journeys we were both faced with unfamiliar and difficult paths, but decided early in the game to skip the hall pass and chart a course for our families.
While I’m sure there were many moments that Denise imagined what it would be like to take the hall pass she fearlessly and firmly embraced her role as an advocate for her children. In 1997 she took it a step farther and co-founded a support group called MOCHA (Mothers of Children Having Allergies www.mochallergies.org ) with Anne Thompson. Together they made an impact on a local level by raising both awareness and support for children suffering from life threatening food allergies.
As they tirelessly advocate for their children and others, they’re not alone. My good friend Michelle quietly volunteers as the lunchroom monitor at her son’s elementary school. I have friends who privately call ahead to figure out what flavor cupcake is being served at school, a birthday party or family gathering so they can create an exact replica for their four year old. I know that all of them patiently teach their children how to read food labels while teaching them their ABCs and I know how difficult it is for each of these mothers to bravely smile as they put their children on the school bus each day.
I’m grateful to each one of them because they’ve made the world a better place for all of us.
Just as we honored families with Autism in April, this month we’re honoring families who have children with life-threatening food allergies. We’ve taken some of the hugest allergens out of our menu (peanuts, eggs, milk and seafood), and will demonstrate how slow cooking can be used to create interesting meals for families who need to pay extra attention to their diets.
If you live locally (in or near Chicago) I hope you’ll join Denise at the 2nd annual Chicago FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education www.foodallergy.org) luncheon on Friday, May 10th as she continues to highlight this very important cause.
So for all you fearless and loving Mothers in the world – Happy Mother’s Day!
Zen Moment
“A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.”
~ Agatha Christie
Illustration by Connie McKay, age 4
