The path to — and through — motherhood can be tough, and local author Lindsay Soberano Wilson wants people to know they are not alone.
The Barrie mother of three and high school English teacher with the Toronto District School Board recently released Hoods of Motherhood: A Collection of Poems and said she is proud to finally add published poet to her list of accomplishments.
“I didn’t set out to write a poetry book about motherhood. It kind of came more organically. I had always aspired to be a poet, but, of course, when I got into teaching and being a mother full-time, that got put on the back burner,” she said.
Soberano Wilson said she had been writing poems since the birth of her first child in 2010, and although she admitted putting pen to paper was often sporadic, she found it to be cathartic.
“It really did help me get through some of the challenges of when I was embarking on motherhood,” she said. “We had our first child really easily in 2010, but then we faced secondary infertility challenges and miscarriages, so poetry really helped me get through that. Eventually, I found I had some thematic poems that related to (our) fertility journey, as well as just some female empowerment and finding your voice … Then it all came together.”
The book, she said, includes poems she wrote over the course of 13 years. She was ultimately pushed to put them together following the loss of both of her grandmothers.
Soberano Wilson said her goal was to give readers the opportunity to identify with both the struggle and the hope she experienced during her journey to and in motherhood.
“I think it’s also about the idea that some people lose themselves in motherhood and some find themselves in it. Many of us do both. It’s that recognition that it’s important to give to yourself in order to be able to give to others.
"It’s a reminder of taking care of yourself so you can take care of others, and that’s something I really learned during the pandemic when I felt burned out from being a teacher and mom. I think a lot of people can relate to that as well,” she said.
