The Story Behind The Global Mom Show

I’ve never been one to state my goals loudly, from a podium, or into the ears of friends or family. What if it doesn’t happen that way, I ask myself. What if circumstances change. I’ve made resolutions before that don’t go anywhere, and I’ve started plenty of projects that I haven’t completed. I’ve hidden my dreams and ideas away so far that I don’t even remember what a lot of them are. For the past six years I’ve been immersed in the world of motherhood. Three pregnancies and three babies in under five years, and all that comes with that—sleepless nights, illnesses, nursing around the clock, playdates, exhaustion, and yes, fun. Having little creatures run around my house that I was responsible for simply overwhelmed me and has felt like more than I was prepared for or could handle. Still, I’ve managed to keep a part time job as well as continue freelance writing for nonprofit organizations, businesses and magazines. Needless to say, its been busy.

In the process of throwing myself full-throttle into mothering, even my own ideals about mothering itself have had to be adjusted and released as I faced the daily tasks required of caring for babes, toddlers and preschoolers. I come from a family of travelers, cultural wanderers, people who explore and adventure into to new lands and seek new experiences around the globe as well as with friends from around the globe. My parents have lived in Eastern Europe for the past ten years, and my sister lives in Africa. My husband comes from a similar background, as one who was raised in a foreign country and spent his early years taking family trips across Europe. He also studied in Prague and traveled with his sister across Asia. As a single person, I lived in Germany and India for several years and traveled to as many countries as I could before moving back to the States about eight years ago. I always dreamed that my kids would grow up speaking multiple languages and interacting with kids from diverse backgrounds, that we would know our way around airports and duty free shops and cobblestone corners of cities in Europe and Asia.

Instead, reality hit. My husband and I moved to a small rural area with little diversity or access to language or cultural programs. We had three kids in four and a half years, and were baptized into the intensity of parenting. Our children had health issues (asthma, food allergies, excema, epilepsy) that required special diets, special medication, and special visits with doctors, naturopaths, chiropractors, and neurologists. I think I’ve spent the past five years trying to figure out what to eat, how to shop, and how to feed my children healthy food that doesn’t make them sick—its been a consuming task in and of itself, and while, I’m grateful that we’ve found a way to eat that seems to support our health rather than compromise it, I realize that a lot of the time and effort I put into that took time away from other things I could have been focusing on—things like teaching my kids about global issues and sharing with other cultures and the world. Now that we have the food area of our lives somewhat under control, and my oldest child is about to turn six, my youngest is nearly one and (almost!) sleeping through the night, I feel like I’ve been able to sit still and breathe in a way that I haven’t in quite a long time.

I feel a new space opening up in my life, and the idea that was conceived in my mind when baby number one was just barely a year old is now ready to be birthed.

Five years ago, I purchased the domain name www.theglobalmom.com. I had a vision of connecting with moms like you who wanted to share their love of the world and its people with their children. I wanted to share ideas and inspirations for learning and educating well-rounded, globally-aware, mindful small humans who would grow into great global thinkers who loved books and travel and different foods and people and wanted to learn new languages and talk to people from places other than their own homes. This vision is still nestled deep inside me, buried from years of neglect, but waiting for when the time is right.

Now, I believe it is time. For the past year, I’ve been revisiting the idea, and the vision has grown. Part of what stopped me before was not only the time needed to make this dream happen, but it was the fear of not doing it right, the idea that I might screw it up, that it might not grow, that it might never take off. The internet is intimidating like that. It exposes you in a new way that I just wasn’t sure I wanted.

But now, I’m ready. The thoughts, the ideas, the passion, the goals—they haven’t gone away, they’ve only gotten clearer. My mission is to inspire moms around the world to live globally-aware lives right where they are. Even if they can’t travel anymore or if they are caught up in the daily tasks of their own lives, through simple conversations with other human beings around the world, we can build connections that will tie us together in new understanding. That understanding between cultures is crucial today and for our future. For future generations to have a chance of living in a peaceful world, they must have an awareness and appreciation for other cultures and individuals living differently from themselves. It’s imperative for all of us to develop this capacity in ourselves and in those we love and nurture.

The Global Mom will be a community that connects moms and caregivers to others around the world and explores what it means to live as globally-aware citizens no matter where we call home. My goal is to help moms stay connected with a global vision of life. Whether you are a mom living, working and raising kids abroad, or whether you feel isolated in your own home, or whether you are already making strides at globally-minded living, this website will inspire and encourage you moms at every stage. It won’t give you one more thing to add to your already burdened plate, but it will spark a new understanding of one another, an understanding that could just change the world.

I know how much my life has been enriched by connections with people from across the globe and with experiences abroad and stateside with individuals from backgrounds different from my own. When I lived in India, I worked with people who had disabilities and were disenfranchised from their community, often seeking employment, medical assistance, and transportation. I made many friends and saw how simple solutions could have a lifelong impact. I believe at the root of all big solutions lies the need for awareness, understanding, and a building of a common ground. At my core, I am a connector, a helper, and a communicator. Although I can’t be in India right now helping my friends with disabilities get their rights, I can help build connections and understanding right where I am. I can raise awareness about social justice issues, disability rights, and refugee needs at the same time as I draw attention to parents seeking to parent in a way that keeps these issues (as well as less weighty ones) from being ignored.

Paul Farmer wrote,

The idea that some lives matter less is the root of all that is wrong in the world.”

The only way to rid our world of that idea is to instill in our children the idea that all humankind have value and inherent worth, and to show them that each individual brings beauty in its own way through a variety of cultures and traditions worldwide.

When we build connections with others and learn how to care for one another, we make the idea that some lives matter less seem unconscionable.

So, now, today, although I’ve shied away from it in the past, I’m stating my intentions for this website:

1. Create content that inspires and encourages moms worldwide to Live with the world in mind.
2. Launch The Global Mom Show, a weekly podcast that interviews moms from around the world who are trying to raise their children with a global awareness. We’ll discuss challenges, inspirations, and cultural differences.
3. Provide resources for moms in need of specific ways to connect what they desire to do with what they are doing.
4. Connect moms around the world through social media and inspire and encourage globally-aware mothering.
5. More to come—the possibilities are limitless when you consider the global connections available to moms seeking to make a difference in the world today!

So there it is, the vision, the cause, the background, the future. This is what happens next with The Global Mom.com. I hope you’ll join me for the journey.