Battle Speech for Mothers

We know the stories well: A small band of soldiers is outnumbered.  The odds are against them.  Everything seems hopeless.  But their brave leader stands and urges them on with a rousing speech.

Whether real or fictional, we know and love these speeches well. From Henry V's "St. Crispin's Day" to Winston Churchill's "We shall never surrender", their words awaken something in us and inspire us to greatness.

Some of my favourite battle speeches come from The Lord of the Rings. One particularly well known moment is Aragorn's speech before the Black Gate. The last army of Gondor and Rohan has walked knowingly into a trap in a desperate attempt to distract the Dark Lord Sauron long enough to allow Frodo to destroy the one ring. In the face of impossible odds, Aragorn urges his men to stand firm and fight.  If you're not familiar with it, give it a quick search on YouTube, it's pretty epic.

I think it's a shame that all these great speeches come in a context of war and fighting. What about other situations in which we need a rousing call to great deeds? For example, what about motherhood? Being a mom can be very challenging. There are days when nothing seems to go right. Diapers explode, food is dumped on the floor, dishes are broken, laundry piles high, tantrums and tears abound. Some days, we need inspiring " battle speeches " too.

So I have adapted one for us. It's based on Aragorn's speech at black gate.  Mothers, as we stand shoulder to shoulder in the face of overwhelming odds: an onslaught of diapers, dishes, laundry, and messes, may we never falter or give up hope.


Mothers of babies, of toddlers, my sisters,
I see in your eyes the same tiredness that would take the heart of me.
A day may come when the strength of mothers fails,
When we forsake the needs of our children
And break our promise of support to our husbands,
But it is not this day.
An hour of despair and shattered dreams,
When the homes we love come crashing down,
But it is not this day!
This day we press on!
By the families that you hold dear on this good earth,
I bid you stand, mothers of the young!