Motherhood is the greatest thing and the hardest thing.

Hearken, O children of wisdom and wonder, to the words of Ricki Lake, who spoke with the honesty of a mother and the clarity of one who has lived both love and trial: “Motherhood is the greatest thing and the hardest thing.” In this brief saying, two vast truths are bound together — the glory and the burden of motherhood. It is the summit of human tenderness and the valley of sacrifice; it is joy that deepens into fatigue, and fatigue that transforms into devotion. It is life’s highest calling precisely because it demands the most of the human heart.

The greatness of motherhood lies in its power to create, sustain, and shape life itself. No throne is higher, no task more sacred. From the moment a mother carries her child — whether in her body or her soul — she becomes a vessel of creation and compassion. Her strength is not the strength of conquest, but of endurance; her power is not to rule, but to nurture. Yet it is this unseen power, this quiet labor, that builds the foundations of nations and the moral fabric of humankind. As the ancients said, “The hand that rocks the cradle moves the world.”

And yet, as Lake reminds us, motherhood is also the hardest thing. The same love that makes a mother strong also makes her vulnerable. Every joy carries with it the fear of loss; every victory is shadowed by worry. To be a mother is to live with one’s heart forever outside one’s body — to rejoice in another’s laughter and to bleed in another’s sorrow. It is the work of a lifetime, without respite, without applause, and often without thanks. But therein lies its nobility: the mother loves not because it is easy, but because she must.

Consider the story of Sojourner Truth, who, though born into slavery, fought fiercely for her children’s freedom. When her son was sold illegally to another state, she walked miles on blistered feet and challenged the system in court — a black woman standing alone before the law in the 1820s — and she won. Her victory was not for glory, but for love. In her, we see the full measure of motherhood: the union of tenderness and strength, of unyielding devotion and unimaginable endurance. She was both mother and warrior, proving that greatness and hardship are not opposites, but twins born of love.

The origin of Lake’s words lies not in philosophy, but in lived truth. As an actress, producer, and mother, she spoke from experience — from sleepless nights, from moments of joy shadowed by worry, from the realization that no role in life demands so much of one’s whole being. In her simplicity, she echoes a truth as old as time: that love without sacrifice is shallow, and sacrifice without love is unbearable. True motherhood is both — it is love that endures sacrifice, and sacrifice that refines love.

There is also within this saying a lesson for all humanity, not only for mothers. For in each of us lies the call to create, to protect, and to persevere for what we love. Whether we raise children, nurture dreams, or care for others, we walk the same sacred path — one that demands both greatness and hardship. To love deeply is to open oneself to pain, and yet it is that very pain that gives life its meaning. The mother’s example reminds us that the highest joys are often those we fight hardest to preserve.

Let the teaching be remembered: greatness is born of difficulty, and love proves itself not in comfort but in endurance. The mother’s journey — filled with laughter and tears, triumphs and trials — mirrors the journey of life itself. To embrace both the beauty and the burden is to live fully, courageously, and wisely.

And so, let Ricki Lake’s words stand as a beacon to all who give of themselves: “Motherhood is the greatest thing and the hardest thing.” For in that union of greatness and hardship lies the secret of divine love — the love that creates, sustains, and redeems the world.