Moms Deserve More Respect

Note: This letter sparked the Vancouver Province editor to write an editorial on a similar topic for their Mother’s Day issue.

Langley Advance, May 3 2011: Statistics show that Canadians, with our fertility rate at 1.6, are not having enough babies to replace our population. This has huge implications for our future as the populations of seniors continues to grow.

One reason often cited is that people are waiting longer to start a family. In Canada, the average age to have a first baby is 28.

As a young woman, I often get the impression (through movies, TV shows, commercials) that marriage and motherhood are seen as a negative responsibility, instead of a blessed privilege. Society portrays the lives of wives and mothers as too tiring and too much work, and that your “me” time gets taken away.

So while I am not belittling the challenges of marriage and motherhood, I think our society should be promoting a more positive demeanour towards them.

Women are not missing out on life’s pleasures if they choose to marry and have children at a young age, but instead should be embracing this time in their lives that they can share with husbands and children.

Married women and mothers should encourage young women with their stories and experiences, and realize that their titles as a wives and mothers are respected by many.

Sue DeHaas,

Langley