Next Sunday is the highly commercialized holiday known as Mother's Day. Meant to drive greeting card, flowers and jewelry sales as well as increase restaurant reservations? Maybe and maybe not. In my life and Rolfing practice, I often see women who feel that they are over-worked and under-appreciated for being the driving force behind their nuclear family. They're the chauffeurs, chefs, accountants, tutors, laundresses, and PDAs (er, what decade am I in again?) to many minors and lucky grown guys everywhere. Often there's not enough thanks to these women to work to make houses homes and a tribe of people a family!

Now, a mother isn't solely a blood and birth relationship. It's a woman who shares her heart and wisdom with people who admire her and who value her successes, failures and insight that have culminated to make her the woman she is. I was lucky enough to have had multiple 'moms' while I was a young girl trying to find my place in the world. These women will always be in my heart because they have gone out of their way to 'adopt' extra children and set a place at their dinner table for me and tell me stories about their adolescence that consoled me through many difficult times. I'm grateful for the perspective and humor that these women have imparted upon me and I hope to be able to return the favor myself someday either to my own children or to other kiddos who need a village of people to love them.

To every mom (my real mom Cindy especially!), I want to take the time to say I love you for who you are and what you've done in the world. Never feel like it doesn't make a difference in some way, even if you never get to the bottom of that laundry pile, or never get those stinkin' Pintrest crafts to look the way they do on the internet - it might be just a conspiracy anyways... And the women who have days of time to get it perfect are probably boring anyways! :-)

If you've ever loved, wiped a tear, or nurtured or nourished anyone or anything, then I think that makes you a mother, even if you don't have kids to call your own. Giving birth doesn't make you a mother and not having kids doesn't make you not one. The bottom line is love. Moms are often overlooked in terms of needs and wants because they usually want their kids to have a better life than they themselves had. We don't need a holiday to love our moms, it should be done daily.

The process of growing a human can leave everlasting changes to a woman's body. The daily grind can give her aches and pains that she glosses over because she has to work through her pain to keep on top of everyone else's needs and activities. This is where I want to come in and reassure the woman who is your 'mom' that she's cared for and she doesn't have to live in survival mode.

If you still feel like you need a reason to treat your mom to something special, then I'm offering from now until May 31st gift certificates for sessions of Rolfing at the price of buy two, get the third half off. (A $360 value for $300 includes tax and gratuity.)

Contact me today and I'll help you return the favor of love and taking away some of life's pains.

Beth Pagel, Certified Rolfer 612-548-4325 pagel.beth@gmail.com

But due to communicable diseases, I can't kiss any boo-boos, sorry. :)

Balanced in Gravity