The Mother’s Day Nobody Talks About

Mother’s Day used to feel different for me.

It used to feel lighter. Simpler.

Now, when Mother’s Day comes around, I find myself sitting with memories more than anything else.

Some beautiful. Some painful. Some that make me smile and cry almost at the same time.

I think grief changes the way you experience days like this forever.

And for me, this day carries two losses close together.

I miss my daughter. And I miss my mom.

There are moments I still cannot believe they are both gone. Sometimes I look around and feel like life kept moving while a part of my heart stood still. That may sound dramatic to some people, but grief has a way of changing time. Certain memories can feel like yesterday, even years later.

What people do not always understand is that grief is not loud every day.

Sometimes it is very quiet.

It looks like standing in the grocery store trying not to cry when you pass the Mother’s Day cards. It looks like hearing a song unexpectedly. It looks like avoiding social media because your heart just cannot handle it that day. It looks like smiling at church while silently missing the people you wish were still sitting beside you.

And honestly, some days grief just feels exhausting.

Not because I have lost faith. Not because God has failed me. But because love leaves an imprint.

When you love deeply, you grieve deeply too.

One thing I have learned through all of this is that peace and pain can exist together. I can love God fully and still wrestle with missing them both terribly. I can thank Him for carrying me while still wishing things had turned out differently.

That tension is real.

And maybe that is the part of grief we do not talk about enough as believers.

Sometimes people expect faith to cancel sorrow. But even Jesus wept.

That scripture comforts me more now than it ever did before because it reminds me that grief is not weakness. Tears are not failure. Mourning is not the absence of faith.

Sometimes it is simply love continuing after loss.

This Mother’s Day, I know many women will quietly carry heartbreak while the world celebrates around them.

To those mothers…

I pray you permit yourself to feel whatever comes. To step away when needed. To remember without guilt. To cry without apology.

And I pray you remember this too:

God is still close to the brokenhearted.

Even here. Even now. Even on Mother’s Day.

Sharon Leonard, with her mother, reflecting love, family, and cherished memories.

Sharon Leonard is embracing her daughter Ciara in a treasured family moment.

More Comfort for the Heart

“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” — 1 Peter 5:7

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” — Psalm 30:5

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you.” — Isaiah 41:10

Scriptures do not remove the grief… they often remind us we do not have to carry it. And on the hardest days, sometimes that reminder is enough to help us keep going.