I am a crier.
I cry watching movies I’ve seen 100 times, TV shows, and yes it’s true… commercials! And being a fan of the television show, This is Us, hasn’t helped me much in the crying department. The show is so incredibly raw and relatable, that it has me crying near the end of every single episode I watch.
What surprised me though, was the way that Episode 4 of Season 6, “Don’t Let Me Keep You”, especially tugged at my heartstrings.
*Note: If you still have some catching up to do and don’t want any spoilers, watch the episode before you continue reading!
In the episode, “Don’t Let Me Keep You”, Jack Pearson learned that his mother had passed away. If you’re not familiar with the storyline, Jack grew up with an abusive father and eventually helped his mother escape his childhood home to start a new life in Ohio. He had promised for years that he would visit his mother but was not able to venture back to Ohio until thirteen years later, sadly, for his mother’s funeral.
Jack is of course, flooded with emotions during this difficult time, and amid preparation of a eulogy, he has many flashbacks of his childhood. Particularly, these flashbacks focused on remembering the safety, love, and compassion that his mother provided him in the midst of the dark cloud that lived within the four walls of his childhood home.
During the eulogy, Jack reflects on his childhood:
“The house I grew up in wasn’t an easy place to be a son. But it wasn’t an easy place to be a mother either. We did our best, the both of us. And we were lucky because we got out. But, when you live in a house like that, there’s a part of you that never gets out. So, you build a new house. A better house, for a better life. And you try as hard as you can to make sure that part of you that still lives in that old house is as small as possible. So, I did my best to forget everything about that old house…There are four people here today: my wife, my children… They gave me a new home.”
Right around this point, I became completely overwhelmed in my emotions, thinking of the home I am creating for my son. I understand firsthand what it is like to come from a home like Jack (a blog post for another day), and I will never take for granted the life I have created for myself, but even more so, the life that I am now cultivating for my son.
What a privilege we have as parents to create a safe, healthy, and compassionate home for our children. A place where it is acceptable to make mistakes, learn, and be loved.
It is easy to get lost in the day to day mundane of raising children. However, I want to encourage you to take a moment now to think of the home you are creating for your family. The privilege you get to create a life-long impact on your child.
Thank you mama, for the work that you put in each day to create a better house for a better life.
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