A Woman Said This About My Son
And it was the best compliment
“Is that your son?” asks a woman as I pass by her table in a restaurant.
We are at the venue for a tasting where my oldest son and his fiance are getting married. It’s a gorgeous resort on the beach. The joy between the two of them is as magical as the spot.
I can’t help but smile.
It does my heart good to see how happy they are.
We’ve spent the day with my beautiful soon-to-be daughter-in-law’s mother and sisters. It’s been wonderful to hang out together and share this pre-wedding excitement.
I can’t believe they’ve included me.
I’m counting my blessings. I’m the mother of the groom. My son’s fiance and her family didn’t have to include me but they did. It only makes me love them more.
After the tasting, we all go for drinks.
Eventually, her family heads home since they live locally.
But the three of us are staying at the venue.
We decide to wait at one of the resort’s restaurants for the music to begin. And of course, sip a few expresso martinis in the meantime. I love hanging out with my son and his fiance.
But this feels even more special.
As if I’ve been allowed into a private moment.
A fly on the wall soaking it all in.
The music starts and it’s hard to sit still. The ambiance is already intoxicating and this just makes it more mesmerizing. There’s a glorious energy in the room.
You would never know it was a rainy day in January.
But the beach makes all things better.
My son and his fiance get up to dance.
They are (if a mother doesn’t say so herself) adorable. It’s not only the love between them, it’s the happiness and fun they are having on the dance floor.
My new daughter makes her way back to the table.
My son motions to me from the dance floor.
I can’t stop smiling because he’s being overly animated. He’s funny on a good day but he’s outdoing himself in this moment. I accept his enthusiastic invite to the dance floor.
We dance.
We laugh.
It’s pure joy.
He’s twirling me around the dance floor. He’s still in his full animated glory and having the time of his life. It would be hard not to notice him. He’s always endearing and I love that he wants to dance with me.
We are having so much fun.
Three women are sitting at the table next to ours.
I pass them on the way back to our table.
“Yes,” I answer back. “He is my son.”
“I hope I have a son that dances like that with me one day,” she says. “All three of us were watching you guys and we all hope we do.”
“Do you have boys?” I ask.
“Yes,” she says. “I have two.”
“How old are they?” I ask.
“They are little,” she says.
“You will definitely have sons who dance with you like that one day,” I say.
“You think so?” she says.
“Of course,” I say.
I didn’t have to wonder if she would.
Because I am a boy mom.
It’s all about the love and joy between you.
It’s not the preconceived notion some prescribe to the mother and son relationship. It’s not the stereotype that many give into — that somehow you can’t be as close to a son as a daughter.
I have three outrageously beautiful boys.
They all have huge hearts and a big joy of life.
I didn’t treat them any differently than I would have treated a girl.
I didn’t think our relationship would be less than or not as close as a mother-daughter relationship. I talked to them and included them in all things.
There weren’t any gender limitations or expectations.
I come from a big family with a lot of men. My uncles and cousins were all close with their mothers. I never knew anything but that. Everyone was treated the same and the expectations of everyone were the same.
There wasn’t any boy/girl delineation.
It never occurred to me to not expect the same thing.
I always thought I’d have a son who danced with me like that one day.
I still loved hearing her words.
Although I’m not sure I can take credit. It’s all about my son. It’s about who he is. It’s about the love and joy within him. It’s about the relationships he holds dear.
I have two other boys just like him.
They are filled with all the same things.
And they too, dance with their momma.