Welcome to Grandmotherly Wisdom

I just turned 34 last week. Looking back, it’s crazy how many things I found wise and profound in the past don’t impress me much now anymore.

Most of the wisdom I’ve ever read was written down by childless men, whether that’s philosophy, holy books, or productivity tips. Very little of that is still relevant now that I’ve become a mother. All this talk about rationality, sovereignty and independence sounds completely oblivious how helpless we are when we enter this world, and how much time and attention it takes to raise such a helpless kid. Children rarely make it to philosophy treatises, and when they do, it sounds like the author had never spent a whole day around an actual child.

I don’t want to discredit the wisdom of childless men. It certainly has its time and place, and I strongly believe that everyone will benefit from cultivating agency and responsibility. But it’s high time to counterbalance this perspective with one of what it takes to bring new life into this world, and all the dependencies that follow from there. In short, all the things wise grandmothers always knew, but were usually too busy to write it all down.

I’ve only been a mother for just two years, and I’m still early in the process of discovering all this wisdom myself. But given that wise grandmothers rarely have time to write it all down, I guess someone else will have to do it for them.

Welcome to Grandmotherly Wisdom. Let’s figure it out all here together.