The Hand That Rocks the Cradle

Daily writing prompt

Who are some underrated people in history?

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Well, firstly, I’m sure that history is full of underrated people. But when I see this prompt, I think of all the people that shape history that don’t feature in history books. When I was a child, I remember hearing the expression “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” It wasn’t cherished by many modern women. They saw it as patronizing and maybe as part of a conspiracy to edge women out of influential roles in politics and so on.

But speaking from a personal point of view, my own mother was a huge influence on me. And when I look at great people that I admire, both historically and contemporary, I’m often interested in their family backgrounds. But it’s not just mothers and families. We all shape history. But it’s easy to think in terms of leaders. As an evangelical Christian, I tend to think of the centuries since the reformation in terms of leaders. And in my younger years, I tended to model myself on contemporary reformed preachers, such as Martyn Lloyd Jones, David Pawson, JI Packer, John Stott, Geoff Thomas and so on. But nowadays, I often think of all the “ordinary people” who shaped my life in church, both men and women. When I was young, I didn’t think it worthwhile to be “ordinary”. But that’s what I am. And if I was starting out again, I would work harder at being the kind of ordinary person who loves God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength and who loves his neighbor as he loves himself.

Anyway, here are some songs about mothers. Not everyone is a mother. But we can be like mothers in that we can be a positive influence on people close to us, whoever we are. The first three of these videos speak of the influence of mothers, even after the have passed away. Let it Be speaks of the calming effect of Paul McCartney’s mother, Mary, who passed away when he was in his teens. The same thing happened to Bono. In his song, Iris, he compares his mother to a star that has gone, but its light remains. And so many people down the century have had a positive effect on history that still affects us today.