Parenting
By Ben Thompson
Updated: Aug. 12, 2023
Originally Published: May 9, 2023
Whenever I decide to whip up a meal, you can bet there’s a call or two to my mom to confirm I have the right ingredients, the appropriate pan, or to double-check the oven temperature. My mom is an incredible cook with a repertoire of mouthwatering dishes, and her chicken parmigiana is truly legendary. Christmas Eve simply wouldn’t be the same without her homemade pizza, which I believe is good enough to sell in a restaurant.
What amazes me most about my mom’s cooking is that it’s rooted in instinct rather than strict recipes. She has a collection of well-loved cookbooks, but when she guides me over the phone, she shares wisdom from her experiences instead of just reading off a list of steps.
This intuitive approach to cooking mirrors how my mom has parented me and my two siblings. Now that I’m raising my three own children, I find myself often straying from conventional advice and trusting my instincts—much of which I learned from her.
There are days when I crave some “me time” and feel a bit selfish as a parent. In those moments, I reflect on my mom’s unwavering selflessness when she was raising us. I’m sure she had her challenging days, but they seemed rare. She was constantly “on duty,” shuttling us to our activities, managing endless laundry, and providing exactly what we needed—even when we were grumpy teens who didn’t know how to communicate our needs (she even had to become a mind reader!).
As I navigate parenthood now, I often think, “I’m probably facing this because of the kind of kid I was.” More frequently, after tackling a situation with my children, I realize, “I should have approached that differently. Like Mom would have.” Her exemplary parenting has set a high bar, not just in the kitchen but in life.
I like to think that if you gave me some eggs, breadcrumbs, cheese, sauce, and chicken, I could whip up some chicken parmigiana, but I’m eternally grateful for my mom’s guidance that leads me to create something even close to her culinary delights.
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In summary, the lessons I’ve learned from my mother extend far beyond the kitchen—they shape my approach to parenting and life. Her wisdom, instinct, and selfless love continue to guide me as I raise my own children.