You are an extraordinary mother.
Every day, you do what you can do—and it is enough.
The homework, the garbage, the dishes, the laundry, the pets, the yard, the carpools, the roof that needs repair, the friendship that needs repair, the deadlines, the discipline, the bruised egos and broken bones. You take care of it all. Every day and every night.
What you don’t get right at first, you make right later. And you learn. And you grow.

You are welcome here, just as you are.
Yes, with that body.
No matter how little you’ve slept or how long it’s been since you cleaned the bathroom.

Your children need happy parents more than they need married parents. By tending your happiness, you are showing them the way.
By expecting to be cared for well in relationship, you are teaching them how self-responsibility is embodied, and that self-worth is cultivated day by day by day.

Even as you can’t handle it, you’re handling it. And you will keep on handling it.

He (or she) loved you. He did. The best he knew how.

Even grief and rage can be medicine. Even heartbreak can heal us.

Your darkest places are showing you where you need more: love, tenderness, acceptance. For yourself. For your co-parent.
When we let the drama go, we meet the deep, sometimes ancient pain. You are strong enough to withstand it. The more you let it have you, the quicker you will emerge on the other side.

You are strong. You are beautiful. You are fierce. In reclaiming your own life, you are changing the course of history. You are giving your children the greatest inheritance you could possibly give them: You.