PUSHING THE LIMITS OF MOTHERHOOD

NOT LONG AGO, a member of a ballet troupe would have needed to end her career in order to have a child. Now it's gaining popularity within ballet companies for women to be active dancers, have children, and resume their careers, barely skipping a beat.

And recently a woman in her mid-fifties gave birth to twins in New York City. While she took it in stride, reporters at a press conference threw out obstacles as they did their math. For instance, it was pointed out that when the children are teenagers, the mother will be in her seventies. Then what? She answered that when she becomes 70, she won't be like 70. She claimed that to her, age is mental and motherhood is not confined by it. Some of the coverage of the story questioned the woman's wisdom in crossing perceived parameters regarding motherhood. One report ended with the fact that some fertility clinics consider women over a particular age to be ineligible to become mothers.

Actually, though, mothering is something we all do and experience every day. It's the caring we do. It's the tenderness we see in others toward us. Motherhood is a God-quality. So are fatherhood, joy, steadfastness, kindness. When they're regarded as qualities derived from God, it's easier to see that these qualities expressed are not confined to particular periods in life, or necessarily defined by gender. It's hard to imagine being too young or too old to be loving, generous, or good. Can we be too masculine or too feminine to be honest, pure, or calm?

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Testimony of Healing
YOU CAN'T HARM AN IDEA
March 14, 2005
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