Mother’s Day – colored in pink and full of glittered hearts. A day to honor your mother, yourself as a mother, or those other important women in your life. Kids eagerly holding out handfuls of dandelions and handmade cards. Your mother on the phone telling you how proud she is of you while you both laugh over a shared memory. A loving husband that makes you breakfast in bed and lets you sleep in.

But what about the other women?

The woman that has buried her only child, with not much more to show than a grave to shed tears over, afraid that the world will forget what she never will.

The woman struggling with terrible depression, forcing herself out of bed day after day for her kids and plastering on a fake smile.

The woman whose spouse has died, whose children are in deep in the trenches of grief alongside of her.

The newly divorced woman, scared and alone, hoping and praying she’s done what is best for her and her children.

The woman whose child is hospitalized, sick or dying, who is in such raw pain it hurts to breathe at times.

The woman who comes from an abusive home, who hasn’t spoken to her mother in years, who won’t be sending a card or calling home.

The woman that would give anything to be a mother, that has tried and tried and is afraid there is something wrong with her.

The woman that has just experienced a miscarriage, feeling betrayed by her body with hormones running rampant.

The woman who is suffering in her marriage lonely and heartbroken, who lies to the world while she feels like she is fading into nothingness.

The woman whose mother is no longer on this earth, her very best friend in the world and the one she would give anything to talk to for just a moment.

The woman whose child has died, who will forever be deeply missing part of herself and part of her family.

The woman whose mother neglected, hurt, and abandoned her in a thousand different ways, who is now secretly afraid she’s broken and unlovable.

The woman that is all alone, whose children are estranged from her.

The woman that is sick, fighting for her life, afraid of what will happen to her kids if she doesn’t make it.

The woman battling addiction, dealing with ongoing abuse, constantly fighting with her children, and more.

Mother’s Day – colored in pink and full of broken hearts. It’s not as joyful and carefree as we’d like to believe. It’s not at all what it’s made out to be in those heartwarming ads. There are so many women that don’t feel like they fit into the mold for this day. There are so many women that are hurting on this day and subsequently by this day.

So I want to ask you, or implore you, to reach out to one of these women. These mothers with the broken hearts. We all know at least one. They are you. They are me. They are our neighbors, friends, family, and acquaintances. They are hurting. They are scared. They feel alone. They don’t know how they are going to make it through another day. They are doubting themselves. They are fighting their way through this day and through this life.  

What can you do? You don’t need eloquent words or long, thought provoking speeches. You don’t need anything more than a sincere acknowledgment and recognition of how hard a day like this may be for them. A reminder that even when they feel alone, they are not alone. Just a few words of encouragement to keep going. A way to show them they are not forgotten. A simple act of love. That is how you honor these hurting mothers.