It never rains on the Rose Parade…until it does.
It never rains on the Rose Parade. Until it does.
Over the 135-year history of the Rose Parade, it has only rained 10 times—only twice in the last 86 years.
But this year was different.
It was forecast to rain on the day my 83-year-old mother was fulfilling an experience that’s been on her bucket list since she was a little girl.
A day we planned for an entire year.
Surely the weather people were wrong. We told ourselves the forecast would change in the coming days as we boarded our plane bound for the West Coast.
But as the days ticked by, the forecast didn't budge.
The chance of rain hovered between 80% and 100% as the day approached.
It will change, we said repeatedly to reassure ourselves. It never rains on the Rose Parade.
But when the day arrived, we couldn't hide from the truth.
It was going to rain on our parade. Perhaps even pour.
My mother was dejected. Would this ruin her dream?
Watching her disappointment brought back familiar feelings from my own struggle with infertility. I was chasing the dream of motherhood, and I came up short every time.
Statistically unlikely events kept happening to me.
That adversity taught me something. When circumstances prevented me from becoming a mother, I created this habit:
1. Take a breath.
2. Ask myself if the goal of motherhood was still worth fighting for (for me, the answer was always "𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗲𝘀").
3. Then I weighed my options, considering whether there was anything I could change to increase my chances of success.
4. After making the changes I could control, I took the next step forward in faith.
Obviously, we couldn't control the weather. And the goal of seeing the parade was still worth fighting for in my mother’s eyes. So, we decided to press forward.
As our bus approached the parking lot, it started to pour.
So we waited.
When the rain lessened, we found the way to our soggy seats. We came prepared with rain ponchos, so it was okay.
Just as the parade reached us, the rain stopped.
We were able to enjoy a front row seat to the beautiful spectacle of flowers with only a few sprinkles.\
City of Hope float
The lesson? Sometimes adversity tries to keep us from fulfilling our dreams. It's the universe's way of testing us to see how badly we want it.
If the dream of motherhood is truly important to you, it may be time to re-evaluate your course and find a way to move forward.
On January 26, I'm bringing together six experts who focus on different paths to motherhood for a lively virtual panel discussion.
If you're struggling to make your dream of motherhood a reality, I hope you'll tune in to explore new possibilities and hear from women who can support you on your journey.
Message me to get more details.
Because nothing should rain on your parade of becoming a mother.
#roseparade
#motherhoodjourney
#cherischoice
