Santina Nyagah, author of the food blog Broccoli Crazy, is mom to six year old Michelle and two-and-a-half year old Jeremy. I asked her what pieces of advice she’ll give Michelle as she grows up, and this was her response:
“When you asked me advice I would give my daughter the first thing that came to my mind was the song by Martina Mcbride “In my daughter’s eyes”. It was one of my favorite songs after Michelle was born, and it still brings tears to my eyes each time I hear it play. It defines motherhood and what being the mother of a girl means to me.
I see the world through my daughter, and these are the pieces of advice I’ll give to her as she grows.
Michelle,
On being yourself….
The best gift you can give yourself is to love yourself completely, despite any imperfections you may have. Because afterall, none of us are born perfect.
On loving others……
You can only give as much love as you have in yourself. If you hate yourself, then you will hate everyone around you, but if you love yourself, then there will be nothing but love to spread to the world around you.
On life…..
Life is like a jigsaw puzzle; you have to find the pieces that fit you and complete your own puzzle. That is the way it is with everybody and that is why it is futile to compare yourself with other people. We are all here on earth to find the pieces that fit.
On being brave…
As you go through life, you have to be brave and not give up. No one is born brave but life teaches us how. When problems come your way (as they surely will), you need to remember these words as sang in Martina’s song….”hang on when your heart has had enough, and give more when you feel like giving up.”
On career…
Do follow your heart, but listen to your head too; it’s all a balancing act between what you love and what’s going to put food on the table.
On being a mother….
The best thing that happened to me was being a mum, because it taught me selflessness and that you can never love too much -only too little.
On marriage….
Marry your best friend, that way when the wrinkles set in and you are both tottering around the house together on walking aids, at least you can hold hands and still talk to each other.
On raising kids
Raise them in a better manner than I raised you… I am human after all and may have made some mistakes but above all raise them to be better human beings.
And finally…
We are all here for a reason and a season, so do your best, dream big and leave the world a better place than you found it. And to never forget to laugh – it’s never that serious.“
Thanks Santina for sharing your gems to Michelle.
Love it
Nice…wewe ni msharp.
Everytime i hear this song i weep like a child… mostly coz it reminds me how i am EVERYTHING to my baby… Is that not a blessing??
I feel you @MissBabes. It is a blessing for sure. Is there anything we wouldn’t do for our babies?
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Absolutely love it!!! n i love the song too.