WWMD?

Sherri T.

My sister is a smart, talented and independent woman. She is older and (probably) wiser than me.

So imagine how surprised I was when we were talking one day about something very critical – though I have no recollection what it was – and she concluded her thought with the following: “WWMD?”

My reply (in my head): WTF? What is WWMD?

I said (this time aloud): “WWMD?”

She said: “WWMD?

I said: “I don’t really know the answer to your question because I don’t really know what you’re asking.”

She said with incredulity: “Seriously? Everybody knows WWMD.”

My reply (in my head): Clearly, I’m a nobody because I have never heard these letters – at least not in that combination.

I said: “Well if you tell me what WWMD stands for, I may be able to reply to your query.”  I threw in a sophisticated word at that point, trying to impress.

She said, this time with exasperation: “WWMD stands for What Would Mommy Do? 

I said: “Right. Of course.” (Of course, I didn’t know that).

I realized just then two striking things that continue to surprise me.

First and less important, how come I didn’t know WWMD? OMG.

Second and more significant was the fact that my older (and wiser) sister was actually asking WWMD?

I still don’t recall the situation or what we finally decided our mother would do under the circumstances.

But I do recall my genuine surprise that my sister would be seeking our mother’s guidance – even after she has been gone for so many years.

And I have heard her ask “WWMD?” many times since. Most recently, when she had to cancel the same vacation twice for two different reasons. 

She was considering rescheduling for a third time but was understandably reluctant. “Mommy wouldn’t think it’s a good idea to take this trip. “ I am not sure that our mother actually ever invoked the three-strikes-and-you’re-out rule but it obviously had influenced my sister.  

Funny thing. Rarely would we follow our mother’s advice when she was dishing it out, always frequently and usually uninvited, back then. Interesting how we not only seek, but actively welcome it, right now.