Welcome to the Twitter Chats Blog Tour, organized by Mari Juniper at Mari's Randomities and Anne Tyler Lord at Don’t Fence Me In. Today's theme is Mother's Day.
You'll be traveling with us through the blogs of some of the fantastic authors and writers who participate in our weekly -- funny, entertaining and educating -- Twitter chats. This tour will feature writers from #writechat, #litchat, and #fridayflash.
You will be directed to your next stop at the end of this post. Please feel welcome here, and have a happy Mother's Day!
Welcome to those of you who have popped on over from Marisa Birns' blog Out of Order Alice! Marisa is a great blogger and I'm thrilled to follow her on the tour. :)
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Mother's Day is always a tough time for some kids. As a teacher, I've come across many kids who don't live with a mom. In some circumstances the kids are living with only a dad, in others the kids live with a stepmom, grandparents or other relatives, in others with a foster parent and yet others live in a group home.
Kids in books often end up in similar circumstances, and it's surprising how many of my favourite characters don't have an official mom in their lives, but they've sure got a mother figure.
Anne Shirley of Anne of Green Gables fame is an orphan who goes to live with an elderly brother & sister team - Matthew and Marilla. These two share the mother role for Anne. Marilla is tough, structured and hides a great big heart behind a rough exterior. Matthew is quieter, gentler and offers a more obvious kind of love to Anne. Matthew's death still brings me to tears.
Nancy Drew's mom died when she was three - leaving her with her father and housekeeper. My memories are more foggy with Nancy (even though I read every single book several times!) but it seems to me these two adults also shared that essential role of a mother.
Frodo's guiding spirit is his uncle Bilbo in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Gandalf and Aragorn also provide aspects of the mothering role - although neither character is typical mother-figure at all.
Jonas in The Giver has a mother, but she's neither biologically nor emotionally his mother. This is the norm in their community. Jonas doesn't feel the lack until he begins to 'see beyond' the sameness of their community. The Giver, an elderly male, provides much more mothering than his mother ever does.
I'm lucky. I've always had a great mom - and I still have her. Moms or Mother Figures are essential for us and for our characters. We need a 'mom' to guide us, to show us that having a heart and listening to it are vital parts of being human. We need a 'mom' to remind us to stop whining, suck it up and get it done. We need a 'mom' to stand in our corner and show us the real meaning of love, courage and compassion. I hope you are all lucky enough to have had a 'mom' in your life.
In my current ms, I have two MCs. The female was lucky enough to have two solid parents in her formative years. She's learned a lot from both. The male MC was raised by an unrelated elderly man. His mothering techniques varied from, 'You screwed up, you fix it,' to 'Come on, let's find the magic,' to 'I've got your back, take a risk.' Not a bad job of mothering.
So who are the 'moms' in your stories?
PS - Happy Mother's Day Mom!! Luv you! :)
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Thanks for stopping by! Your next stop for the Mother's Day Twitter Chats Blog Tour is Deanna Schrayer's blog The Other Side of Deanna. I just 'met' Deanna recently & I'm thrilled I've done so - she's a great lady. Enjoy your visit :)
The complete list of participants can be found at the host's blogs: Mari Juniper and Anne Tyler Lord.
