Words of Wisdom My Mother Passed On To Me

When I think back to the main things I learned from my mother, they had more to do with an overall feeling than actual words of wisdom, though there were a couple that still run through my head!  It was a way of being in the world as a woman and what it meant to create your own path.  My mother was very driven to make things happen – whatever that might be at the moment.  To give an example, in the early 80’s she worked  at a nursing agency in Orange County, California as a employee.  After only a few months at that job, she realized that not only could she run the business better, she wanted to open her own Nursing Agency.  I can still remember the night she sat down with my dad at the dining table and went over all the details of what it would take to open up their own agency.  Keep in mind, she nor my father had any real background in the medical field besides the few months she worked at the agency scheduling nurses for hospital and home care. And to make it happen my father would have to quit his sales job and build the business together with my mom.  Granted they had two children to take care of so I can’t image the stress they must have felt!  I seriously think it took only a few weeks for them to get the doors open.  They were fortunate that my grandfather provided them with a business loan to get started, but I really believe it was their determination and a will to succeed that allowed them to build Nightingales Nursing Service as one of the top nurse staffing companies in all of Orange County.  My mother even got the kids involved!  She sent me to the library (remember this was back in the day when we didn’t have computers!) to research and design a logo for the new company.  Yes, she asked me to design the logo – and at the age of 12 and boy didn’t that feel great!  They did end up using a logo I had designed which was a nightingale bird in the letter N.

Confidence In Oneself:

This confidence she had in me, that of course I could design the logo is something I treasure as this thought-process and a belief in my abilities was driven deep inside of me and is my backbone.  I have heard from some dear friends that one of the things they like about me is my strength.  And that is the same thing I would say about my own mother.  Through her examples of just going for things that you want – regardless of what others around you say – is also something that I hope to pass on to my daughter.  Both my mother and father were told they were crazy for starting up  Nightingales Nursing Agency with no formal training in medicine and no real background in the nursing field.  I can still see my father at the desk, looking in a  Nursing Medical Journal when speaking to hospitals who were requesting a nurse with training in a specific area.  I think combined with my father’s ability to be the best sales guy around (who passed this amazing ability on to my brother) and both their ability to connect with people,  helped them become successful business owners.  The nurses were loyal to my parents and the hospital staff at the hospitals they worked with loved them.

However, as I said, they built their business up during the 80’s and the glass ceiling was still in place for women in the workplace.  Through my mother’s examples of how to push through this ceiling, by sheer determination and willpower, quietly instilled in me what it meant to be a woman in the world.  She would be disgusted when men in the industry wouldn’t speak to her because she was a woman and wanted to speak to only my father.  For the sake of moving the business along, she would pass the phone to my dad, but demonstrated to me that this back-thinking was not okay.  There are so many examples of my mother not making excuses for being a strong woman.  Sometimes this caused problems for her, but thank goodness she demonstrated this strength and that I took it in!  I hope to do the same with my daughter.  To never be afraid of going after what you want, and if you are afraid, to move through it and just go for it – regardless of what others might think.  Because in the end of the day, it is your life and a journey you only take once.

Her journey lead me to an appreciation for my health:

I went on to work at the agency through high school and on breaks from college and gained a real appreciation for my health.  I ended up majoring in Health Science and Business in college.  Talk about having a major impact on my life!  Interest in health has been at the forefront of most of my life and one that I talk about daily with my daughter.  One of the things I stress over and over to her is the importance of “staying hydrated.”  We will talk about how you can tell if you haven’t had enough water for the day after a trip to the restroom (hint:the lighter the better).  I figured this was an easy example she would remember!  So when I was asked to join in the  Nestlé® Pure Life® – Mom’s Pure Words of Wisdom campaign – I was eager to help spread the word about what they are doing! The Importance of Hydration is something that is key to good health and something we often take for granted.

They ask for you to join in and tell them about women in your life who have passed on words of wisdom that helped make you a better person! Just go here to join in the fun and share these words of wisdom passed on to you: https://nestl-pure-life-purified-water.linqiad.com/click/YHFXaGVndnJk

“Become a fan of Nestlé® Pure Life® on Facebook: https://nestl-pure-life-purified-water.linqiad.com/click/YHVXaGVndnJk and stay tuned for the launch of this year’s Hydration Movement in late July! They will continue to focus on healthy hydration, while also embracing Mom’s Wisdom – sharing and discovering all of the little things that moms have shared over the generations that make our lives better. And one thing all moms can agree on is that it’s important to keep the family healthy, hydrated and happy.

This year, Nestlé® Pure Life® is asking fans to take a simple online pledge to drink more water. They can also enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win prizes and share their own wisdom through the Facebook mosaic.”

Months ago I wrote a post about the importance of staying hydrated you can read here: https://dandelionmoms.com/2012/12/the-importance-of-staying-hydrated/

Tell us about a woman in your life who has shared pure wisdom to make you a better person.

Thanks to Nestlé® Pure Life® Purified Water for sponsoring today’s discussion

Photo courtesy of Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/diana-rummel-high/2735423678/sizes/z/in/photolist-5aHLad-5b5gaL-5hD6q6-5yU5cT-5Gmspn-5KFnTx-5QTavX-5RkEos-67dG15-69Rbza-6geNBh-6idaTE-6mSDfa-6yVgcG-6HaDHp-6WnZa8-73P2pK-74Q7nv-77JwGN-8Jfkxh-8Jfm2q-b492Pn-bbgbWc-dCQD7j-91XWLb-7WEi4J-bzXGkU-9PENxC-8jod7Y-c2KXV1-diqLiA-eG4ibV-dTsPbR-8ZRjcF-d7k4Nd-85bkbD-85esX1-bjVsjB-cphRB9-7ETSAe-8EM4hL-7WZaEc-7KReh6-7Ut7qK-7FM38x-8mi2tV-cRY3HN-aurLmk-aurLyz-aurLsi-9wkmcS/