A Parenting Lesson From Mamma Mia

By Sharon Hurley Hall

I’ve been an ABBA fan for a long time, so it was a foregone conclusion that I was going to see Mamma Mia when the movie came out. It took a while to reach my neck of the woods, but it finally arrived and was just as good as I thought. I knew I would enjoy the music and story, but I didn’t expect to get a parenting lesson at the same time.

The lesson is in a song titled Slipping Through My Fingers. It’s sung from the mother’s perspective and tells of missed opportunities to treasure the every day moments as your children grow. Here’s an excerpt:

Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what’s in her mind
Each time I think I’m close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time

(Full lyrics are here.)

I found the song quite poignant because even now I recognize the truth of what experienced mothers told me when my daughter was born. The time passes so quickly that it’s easy to miss stuff.

So how do you make the most of every moment? In many ways, it’s by appreciating the little things:

• your children’s wonder as they experience something new; something that you may take for granted but see afresh through their eyes
• the first day of kindergarten/school/high school
• the first time they say ‘I love you’ and know what they are saying
• the hugs and kisses and fierce love that young children provide
• the times when you laugh together
• the times when you are the only one who can make them feel better
• their first word and the first time they read

As well as appreciating these things, it’s a good idea to write some of them down. When my daughter was little, I charted each milestone (first step, first tooth, first word) and that list still makes me smile even though she does so much more.

I’ve promised myself that I will treasure those moments and appreciate them by

• recording them
• hanging out with my daughter and doing some of the fun stuff she wants to do
• finding opportunities to laugh
• telling her I love her for no reason at all

That way, I’ll make sure that not too many memorable moments slip through my fingers.

About the author

Sharon Hurley Hall is a born again blogger who has been writing for more than 20 years. Sharon runs the freelance mentoring blog, Get Paid To Write Online.