Mothering is not a very used verb but I remember that back in 2018 it gained some relevance in the media and there were articles talking about it. Even without knowing it, it is easy to link it to terms like mother or motherhood with which it shares roots, but do we know what its meaning is? We talk today about meaning of maternal and everything that this term implies.
Mothering is caring, is to build deep emotional bonds, is to recognize and satisfy the specific demands of a child, of a person who depends on us adults. A role traditionally associated with the mother and that this term aims to separate from them. And motherhood is a cultural construction and a choice that has little to do with carrying out traditionally feminine functions.
The need for the maternal term
Why does the need arise to coin this new term? What social changes have contributed to this? The first has to do with the fact that currently, those hard limits that drew the models of what a man and a woman should be, are becoming blurred. It is one of the compelling reasons for coining this term, of course, but not the only one.
The erasure of those barriers, of what is permitted, of what is desired, of what is expected for a man and a woman has, in turn, caused us to open ourselves to new role and function equations. But also to new types of family and of course, to new ways of understanding motherhood.
Today many have stopped imitating other maternity hospitals to try to build their own based on these new ideas. As a consequence, a new and broad term to name that caring, that protecting, that guiding, that setting limits without it necessarily being associated with a single person, the mother.
Mothering, everyone's business
We cannot raise alone, we do it communally. Is a necessarily collective activity. Without cousins, neighbors, teachers, caregivers, and pediatricians, it would be difficult to survive the demands of motherhood. Mothering and fathering is, therefore, everyone's business.
Mothering is caring, it is to protect, it is to guide... Regardless of whether or not we have children. If you have a nephew and you take care of him some days you are mothering. If you comfort a child lost on the street, if you teach him to play chess, if you heal his wounds, if you take care of one in a hospital or if you dedicate your time to the most disadvantaged children and do it in a conscious and positive way, you are mothering
As adult women we can mother as grandmothers, mothers and aunts, but also friends, neighbors, caregivers... If you become a life model for a child or adolescent, whether for a short period or a long time, you are mothering.
The act of mothering, what does it encompass?
Mothering is caring, it is connect with someone's real needs whose life depends entirely on ours to give an effective and affective response. But it is also about educating and guiding, laying the foundation for the integral development of your person.
Caring, educating, accompanying, protecting, guiding, feeding, clothing, providing emotional support... be present dynamically, willing and positive, that is ultimately maternal. And this verb covers all the orders necessary for the harmonious growth of the child in its different stages.
The idea is that we all contribute to this common work, fleeing from stereotyped functions and assuming shared responsibilities. Thus the experience of mothering is expanded and everything becomes easier and more enriching.
Conclusion
As you have seen, maternal is a broad verb in which we can all feel included if we so decide. And it is that caring, accompanying, protecting, providing, etc. They must be collective actions of all of us who are involved in this society. Without having to be a mother and regardless of whether we are a woman or a man.
Did you know the term? Now that you know its meaning, you just have to put it into practice.