Mom (a story collection) by Leanne Dyck

A collection of short stories and poems to celebrate Mom and strategies for coping with childlessness.

photo by a nurse (I'm guessing)

'Dad, Mom and me (I'm five days old)'

From Mom

A poem and a short story that helped me cope with the death of my mom

A Spark

A short story about the sticks and string that tied me to my mother

Mother, May I

A poem in celebration of childhood, motherhood, and elderhood

Eve's Other Children

This short story was inspired by Icelandic folklore

The Calling

A short story about a young mom

It was Nothing

This short story views the relationship between mothers and children in terms of childhood anxiety and trauma. 

How to cope with not being a mother

Recommended Strategy...

The Pitter-patter of Little Feet

Picture Book Author Q & A

Not Recommended...

Annie

photo by ldyck

On this blog in May

Sunday, May 18

Children's Story: Ethan's Ferry Trip

Ethan travels on a ferry for the first time, and he...

Sunday, May 25

Memoir: Wenlido

Intimidated by the thought of moving from Winnipeg to the heavily populated city of Vancouver, I...

photo by ldyck

Without a reader,

A writer's words mean

Nothing

About the photo...

Picture Book Author Q & A (short story) by Leanne Dyck

 Dreams about having a newly published picture book inspired this short story. 

photo by ldyck

Picture Book Author Q & A

I read my newly published picture book to my audience of children and parents. Then I begin the Q and A.

Some of the questions are about the book, but others... others...

"How many children do you have?" asks a little girl who sits on her mother's lap.

"None. I'm not a mom," I tell her.

"Don't you like kids? Mom says that people that don't like kids don't have—."

Mom says, "Mia, I never said that." To me, she says, "I don't know where she comes up with this stuff."

"Yes, you did." Mia hooks her hand around Mom's neck and brings her head down to face her. "Remember?"

Sensing that Mom feels trapped, I jump in with, "It's okay. I imagine that could be true for some women, but it's never been true for me. I like children, and for many years I wanted to be a mom. In fact, I remember telling my parents I wanted to have eight children."

"Eight?" someone says.

"Yes, that's what my dad said. Eight? just like that, and then he suggested names for the last two—Ben-jam-in and Phil-up."

Someone laughs, and then others do too. 

It puts me at ease, and so I continue, "Instead of having my own children, I worked in daycare centres for fourteen years, helping to care for other people's children. I also adopted cats and dogs and, in a different way, mothered them. And I mother the books I write. And through the stories I share, I like to think that I'm mothering my readers."

Mia gives me a funny look, and I know she's having trouble understanding some of what I'm saying. I hope that maybe she'll talk about what I've said with her mother, and together they'll understand.

I lift my gaze and speak to the entire audience, "I never thought I could be happy without being a mom, but I was wrong. There are many ways to mother, and there are many ways to be happy. And I am very happy." I look at Mia sitting so comfortably on her mother's lap, and for a split second I feel Mia's weight on my lap, and I think, what if? So I add, "Mostly I'm happy." But then I smile, for Mia is where she is meant to be, and so am I.

More...

Books to read to make Mother's Day easier 

an article by Marisa Bate

May on this Blog...

Sunday, May 15

Book Review

The Running Trees by Amber McMillan (short story collection)

Published by Goose Lane Editions

In celebration of short story month

International Short Story Month

Sunday, May 22

Book Review

The Spoon Stealer by Lesley Crewe

published by Vagrant Press

(an imprint of Nimbus Publishing)

Sunday, May 29

Short Story

My Song by Leanne Dyck

They say that you shouldn't meet your heroes. This story offers an explanation of why you shouldn't.

This weekend on Mayne Island

Yesterday, Saturday, I attended Pam Wither's book launch at the Mayne Island Library

A New Reality (short story) by Leanne Dyck

My mother--like many parents with a disabled child--had to come to terms with my disabled. While considering what it must have been like for her, I wrote this short story.

'a flower for mom' photo ldyck

A New Reality

Emily and I went back and forth--one time our house the next hers. This time it was our house. You kids were outside playing. I poured the coffee and we munched the cookies I'd baked earlier that morning.

"These are good." Emily finished her first and took another.

"It's a new recipe. Do you want it?"

"Sure, but mine won't be this good."

"We each have our talents."

"Did you ever find out what's wrong with Lauren?"

We were usually blunt with each other. We were more than friends, more like sisters. But somehow this time her words stung. "What's wrong with her?"

I guess she didn't catch my tone. "Yeah, ears, nose or--?"

"They think she may have a learning disability. They called it dys-lex-c-a." It was the first time I used that word; it was the first time I assigned that label to you.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

"Sorry? Why she's not dead." My words were crisp. Embarrassed, I took a breath, forced a smile. "It's just a temporary setback. She'll get help; she'll get over it; she'll be fine."

Emily offered me a smile. "Of course, she will."

I didn't understand. Dyslexia--the whole thing was so new to me. New and different. I didn't want different. I never wanted to stick out. I was worried what other people would think, say. But you are special. You've always been. And special is good, exciting. A mother wants life to be easy for her child. Your life was never easy. But steel is forged by fire.

This short story is dedicated to my mom--and other women like her.

'Mayne Island beauty' photo ldyck

Next post:  19 years ago this month my husband and I moved to Mayne Island. Next Sunday, I share how I found the island, how we decided to move here and tips on moving to a rural island.

'petals under her feet' photo ldyck

Sharing my author journey...

Book review: The Wonder by Emma Donoghue

Set in Ireland during the 1850s, shortly after the potato famine, The Wonder is historical fiction, a mystery, a love story, and provides social commentary on what it was like to grow up female and poor in Ireland during the 1800s.

Buy The Wonder by Emma Donoghue

Publishing date:  2017
Publisher:  Harper Collins Publishers Ltd.
author website 

When word spreads that an 11-year-old girl (Anna O'Donnell) is living on one spoonful of water a day (and mana from heaven) two nurses are sent to bear witness. Sister Michael is an Irish Roman Catholic nun from the order of the Sisters of Mercy (called the walking nuns because they walk out into the world to give service to the sick, the poor and the uneducated). She provides an interesting foil to the protagonist Elizabeth "Lib" Wright--an English protestant.

Foil:  'a character who contrasts with another character--usually the protagonist--in order to highlight particular qualities of the other character.' -Wikipedia

Lib served in the Crimean War under the founder of modern nursing Florence Nightingale. And, I think it is fair to say, is prejudice against the Irish--at least at the beginning of the novel. This adds tension to several scenes. 

What drew me to this book?

1. The Wonder was nominated for a Scotiabank Giller Prize (2016)

2. After reading Room (a story narrated by a five-year-old boy), I became a devoted fan of Emma Donoghue

The connection between Rumpelstiltskin and The Wonder

In Rumpelstiltskin, the boast is that a girl can spin straw into gold.

In The Wonder, the claim is that a girl can live on water (mana from heaven) alone.

In Rumpelstiltskin, a girl attempts to guess Rumpelstiltskin's name.

In The Wonder, a girl attempts to guess her nurse's name.

If the idea of fairy tales influencing modern novels intrigues you here's a link to other novels that you may enjoy reading. 

Happy Mother's Day

A song for mom

A mother's work is endless

Joys are far too few

One joy is to see you happy

So smile, darn you

-signed your mother

Next post:  A Writer's Dilemma (a poem about the writing life that was inspired by the children's picture book It Looked Like Split Milk and the rock band The Who's song Who Are You?)

Published:  Sunday, May 21 at approximately 5 PM PT