Happy May! With Mother’s Day coming up, I was reminded of a story about George Washington’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, and the influence she had on an entire country.

Did you know she married a widower who had four children? Yep, and then they had five more children together, George being the oldest of those five. When he was 11 years old his father died leaving his mother a single mom to nine children.

When George was 14 years old, his older brother Lawrence used the connections from his service in the British Navy to obtain George an appointment as a midshipman in the Royal Navy. George was ready to go, but his mother intervened and persuaded him to not join the British Navy.

Thank you Mrs. Washington!

She didn’t know the future, that her son would grow to be a political and military leader, or the key role he would play in the American Revolution, or that he would serve as the first President of this new nation.

But she was a mama who loved her son, did some research about these ships, talked to others (there’s a copy of a letter from her brother answering her inquiries), and I’m sure followed her intuition and the feelings in her heart telling her to not let her young son get on that ship.

Had he gone on the ship, who knows what would have become of him. Mary Washington’s influence had significant consequences for her son and the entire country (which also influences other countries -so many ripples!).

I tell you that story because I want to remind you
that you never know how huge of an influence you have on others,
or how far reaching that influence may be.

I’m throwing a little sunshine your way today to let you know that somebody is watching you, and listening to you, and learning from your example, and you may not realize the influence you have on them, or where that will ripple out. Be strong, be positive, trust your intuition like Mary Washington did. You got this!

Now I am off to enjoy the day visiting George Washington’s beloved home, Mount Vernon!

Since we now live in Washington, DC, Dean the Dream and I are taking advantage of all these amazing sights that are nearby. I’ve only seen Mount Vernon in photos, so I’m very excited to spend some time there!

Have a great weekend!