Making the most of Mother’s Day is as simple as bringing your A-game, and plenty of back-up.

Carrying out a successful Mother’s Day Op. is about coordination, planning, and having the right headspace.

Although a cache of cliché gifts suits the nature of the op, they don’t guarantee operational success.

 

“Be all you can be, and be all there” – so goes my take on the U.S. Army slogan.

Alongside creative breakaway, next-level ideas, being fully present is king.

Making space for mum surpasses anything internet search engines can cough up, when tapping into their clickbait pantheon of Mother’s Day gift ideas.

Writing for Forbes, CEO Zandre Campos, said, in a world full of distractions, one of the “most important lessons’ he’s learned is to be present in the moment”.

To paraphrase Campos, learning to be present could be the difference between just keeping your relationship alive, or seeing that relationship thrive.

The key is spatial awareness: be mindful of those around you.

Put the smartphone down. Stop focusing on busyness, and “appreciate what is happening now, right before your eyes”.

Being too “easily distracted by today’s noise”, not being fully there, “makes it difficult to build a relationship and trust”, he added.

“To make the most of your current situation, you need to give it your all, and that includes being completely present in the moment.”

Leaning on acclaimed thinker, Martin Buber, the cradle of life is relationship.

Healthy relationships are nurtured by service, sacrifice, grace, encounter, presence, and risk.

Being present is to recognise – or be confronted with – the presence of others. Buber wrote:

“What is essential is lived in the present.”

“Only as you become present, does presence come into being.”

Paul, when writing his ballsy prison letter to Christians in Phillipi, encouraged his readers to “do nothing from selfish ambition, or conceit, but in humility, to count others more significant than themselves”.

In chains, he spoke of the importance of being mindful of others, not only of our own interests.

Practicing being present, PyschCentral advised, “although its difficult, being more present can benefit relationships, productivity, and, most importantly, overall wellness.”

Offering tips for how to be more present, PC said, “monotask from time to time.”

Slow down, resist the need to “frantically shift attention from one task to another.”

Other PC suggestions included, “reducing distractions.”

Leave the phone alone, and only check in after eating breakfast.

Listing the benefits, PyschCentral highlighted, reduced stress, improved focus, better management of anxiety, and healthier relationships.

The indirect benefits of practicing being present are cherishing enjoyable experiences, clearer thinking when reading a book, or watching a movie, and better sleep.

Prayer, and deep-breathing exercises can also help.

Apply 4-7-5: Breath in for four seconds. Hold for seven seconds. Breathe out for five seconds.

Another good idea is ditching social media before bed, and committing to what I call, social media free Sundays.

In common Greek the word mindful (prothumia) carries the meaning: ‘forward thinking, readiness, zeal, spirit, and inclination’.

Forward thinking goes a long way in helping kids love bomb mum.

Make Mother’s Day a well-planned military operation.

Be present.

Assemble team dad, strategise, and execute MD Two-Zero-Two-Three, with the kind of attentiveness mum deserves.

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Photo by Specna Arms.