This week, I want to speak into surrender, a quality I believe is vital for being a woman and a mother in this world.
Now, when some people hear the word surrender, they think of giving up, of defeat. But that’s not the surrender I’m talking about.
The surrender I’m speaking of is about allowing.
It’s like water.
Like a river.
Flowing, powerful, soft.
Trusting.
If we look at conception, we cannot will it to happen. We have to wait. We have to be open. We have to be receptive. We have to surrender to the unfolding.
That same surrender, that same trust, is something we are called to bring into our daily lives as women and as mothers.
Yes, there is always so much to do:
What’s for dinner?
Did we forget to buy milk?
Are the children okay?
And what about my needs?
All that noise in our heads, all day long. And yet there is also a deeper knowing available to us. A place to return to. A wellspring of ancient wisdom and quiet power.
We know what to do, when we pause and return to ourselves.
When we listen to that soft voice within.
We remember: we’ve got this.
It’s not about the forgotten grocery item.
It’s about being present to the moment,
Present to the unfolding,
Present to ourselves,
To our children,
To our loved ones.
If we return to conception for a moment, the egg doesn’t go out looking for the sperm. She doesn’t worry or question. She simply waits. She rests in her knowing. She is receptive. Calm. Still. She allows the process to unfold, knowing that it will all happen at the perfect time.
There is a timing for everything. And it is always right.
Birth teaches us this too.
We can have a plan, a birth plan but it’s more of a guide than a fixed script.
We educate ourselves, we prepare, and then we let go.
Because what is going to unfold will be miraculous.
And it will be perfect, even if it looks different from what we imagined.
And so we carry this surrender into motherhood.
Through every stage.
From the sleepless haze of newborn days…
To the joy of a baby recognising you, smiling, loving you…
To the fierce independence of a toddler finding their will…
To the school-age child learning the world and growing wings…
To the preteen who wants space but still needs you close…
To the teenager who longs to be free but isn’t yet fully grown.
At every stage, surrender.
If right now that feels impossible, if you feel like you’re just holding it all together, I want you to take a breath and remember this:
It’s autumn here in Johannesburg.
The trees are letting go.
The leaves turn gold and red and brown, and they fall.
They don’t fight it.
They simply let go.
Because it’s time.
And so, I invite you to do the same.
Close your eyes for a moment.
Imagine a river, a gentle river.
Maybe you’re standing beside it, maybe sitting close.
Now take a fallen leaf, any leaf and place it in the water.
Watch it float.
Let it go.
Watch it surrender to the current.
Feel how water flows softly, gracefully, with ease and yet, over time, it shapes the earth.
You are water.
You are made of water.
And you can flow.
You can surrender.
Even in the chaos, even in the questions, even in the unknown, you can soften, trust, and return to the wisdom that lives within you.
Let yourself flow.
love always
Theoni