"The Weight and Wonder of Single Parenting"

Single parenting is a journey shaped by both challenge and deep, unexpected joy. I know this firsthand. My father, Joseph Brown, passed away when I was just three years old. I don’t have memories of him, but I vividly remember the funeral — the heaviness around and the sadness I didn’t yet have words for.

My mother, Berthiner Brown, suddenly found herself raising seven children alone. For years she worked as a cook at an elementary school, spent long hours ironing clothes for others in our den and often cooked and sold her prepared dishes to make ends meet. We always had stable housing, suitable clothing, a roof over our head and food on the table. Bills were paid on time; birthdays were remembered and celebrated. Our story is not unique. After her divorce, my mother-in-law Edna Robinson (a hotel cook), did the same for her three boys.

Looking at our circumstances from the outside it might have appeared that we didn’t have much. Such an assessment would have been grossly incorrect. My mom, our close-knit community and extended family gave us everything that mattered: stability, discipline, love, and a belief that we could become more than our circumstances. They loved and pushed. Pushed and loved.

Single parenting is often described in terms of struggle, and yes, the challenges are very real. The long days. The financial pressure. The emotional load. The constant balancing act. But there is also beauty: the closeness, the pride, the resilience that grows in both parent and child.

This week, we honor the single parents who are doing the work of two people with the heart of ten. Your sacrifices matter. Your presence matters. And your children, like me, will embody your strength. For the rest of their lives that strength will steady them through the bad times they will undoubtedly face at some point in their journey.

To this day, my private mantra stems from me remembering my mom, her care and her many sacrifices. When I face challenges, I say it quietly to myself: If she can do that, I can do this.