The Wisdom of Shampoo by Dale Skram, mom of four

I grabbed my shampoo bottle and noticed the phrase, “Know the hair you have to get the hair you want.” Normally I don’t read the bottle, but that phrase caught my attention. Pantene has all kinds of shampoos to address all kinds of problems. If you have dry, limp, or color-treated hair they have a solution for you. All you have to do is know your hair and your hair’s “issues” and then Pantene can make all of your hair dreams come true.
I think those folks at Pantene are extremely wise, and I realized that their philosophy of shampoo applied to my life as a woman and mom. In order to become the person that I want to be, I must first know who I am today. And when I admit who I really am, which is often short of where I want to be, then I have taken that first step toward change.
 

"My anger came out in yelling."

For example, I was getting really angry with my children about leaving their toys, shoes, and stuff all around the house. My anger came out in yelling. My husband would ask, “Honey, why are you so angry?” I would reply “I am not angry.” I just couldn’t admit it. 
One day a neighbor standing at the front door heard one of my rampages, and I couldn’t hide my anger problem anymore. My first step on the road to being the person I wanted to be — a calmer mom — started with me admitting my anger to some people I could trust. And while all my dreams about the person I really want to be haven’t quite come true yet, I am trying to be honest about who I am at each stage on this journey of change.

Dear God, show me who I am today in one specific area. Give me the courage to agree with you and then change me into who you want me to be.

Dale is a popular speaker and MOPS Mentor in Boulder, CO (www.DaleSkram.com). She presents on the topic of mom friendships in the MOPS video curriculum for 2012-13.