Relationships of Mothers and Daughters

May is a month when we often think of mother-daughter relationships.  There are Mothers Day Celebrations and Mother-Daughter Teas and Banquets.  I’m in the stage of life in which I’ve made the full circle from the time my mother cared for me as a little girl, supported me as I sprouted my wings and went off to college, moved to another city for my first job, got married, had my own kids, etc.  Now I have grown daughters of my own and grandchildren.  And my mother needs my support as she struggles with physical pain, widowhood, loneliness, and the frustrations of life in a nursing home.  I am privileged to have a supportive husband who has moved with me to live near her so that we can minister to her in her last years.

My mother gave me a great Christian heritage, but that doesn’t mean that our relationship was always perfect.  Mothers and daughters have enough differences and similarities that they have to work on their relationship just as they have to work on their other family relationships.

Today on my way home from work, on the radio I heard an intriguing interview of a mother and daughter who had struggled in their relationship over several years.  Much of their struggle was due to lack of communication of what they were really thinking and feeling.  Both were trying to protect the other in some ways, and instead of smoothing things over, it just caused frustration and misunderstandings.

Together they have written a book that can aid mothers and their adult daughters to build solid friendships and understanding with each other.  It will also help those with daughters who are not yet adults to communicate better and perhaps to avoid some of the pitfalls that these two women faced in their relationship.

The book is Mother-Daughter Duet: Getting to the Relationship You Want with Your Adult Daughter by Cheri Fuller and Ali Plum.

I believe that this book will help many mothers and daughters who need insight on their relationships with each other.  Even though it is not a devotional book, reading it, along with studying biblical principles on relationship, would be a good focus for personal devotions.

Cheri Fuller is a best-selling, award-winning author whose books have sold more than one million copies. She speaks to a wide range of women at women’s conferences and is a frequent guest on national radio and television programs.

Ali Plum is Cheri’s daughter, a writer and songwriter, a wife, and a mother to Noah and Luke. She and her mom have weathered the ups and downs of their relationship to find one of the most treasured, honest relationships of their lives. Ali has recorded background vocals for popular musicians, and Mother-Daughter Duet is her debut into book publishing.