A Mom Worth Remembering

I feel so blessed and so fortunate to have had a fantastic mom. She was the most selfless and hardest working person I have ever met. Although she has been gone over 22 years now, not a day goes by that I don't think of her. Just about 5 feet high, beckoning brown eye and had one of the best senses of humor on the planet. She and my dad both loved to laugh, and I guess they passed that love of laughter onto their twelve children, because that is how I remember all of our gatherings. Full of laughter. Some people might say she never worked a day in her life, since she never held a paying job. We all know how false that statement would be. I rarely saw her sit down, and she was always the last to eat. She would handwash the dishes every night with no help. Nope, not even from me. I honestly thought she enjoyed it and I rarely offered to help. The kitchen was her domain. I would often cook and bake with her, but cleaning up? Nah. Sorry, mom, I figured you wanted it done your way and by the way you would often sing, I figured you liked it.

In my early years, I remember my mom wore mostly dresses and fancy white gloves. When she started wearing pants, it was the topic of conversation until we were all used to it. Poor thing had to have all of her pants hemmed since she had such short legs. She was always reminding me to sit like a lady and would give table manner lessons to me and my nephews. Good manners were important to her and I can remember her saying often, "you are never too poor, or too rich to have good manners and a good sense of humor." Brilliant.

 Mom was a true "stay at home mom". She never obtained a driver's license, which I think probably saved us on car repairs and auto insurance..... That's all I'm going to say about that. But being at home every day was her calling. She loved taking care of the home, taking care of our dad and putting good food on the table. I am sure she complained occasionally, but I simply don't remember much complaining coming from her. Yes, I tend to memorialize her with only the good memories, but to me, she was nearly perfect. She had an easy laugh and a devilishness about her that I have never seen in any other person. To this day, no one has ever come close to being as special as she was to me.

 Some of the attributes she had that I am most thankful for are: her humility, her sympathy and her listening and compassionate ear. She never tooted her horn about what she could do, and she would give graciously to others, never asking for anything in return. It seemed like she would listen to me ramble for hours and really listen. And she had this amazing ability to feel your feelings alongside you. In many ways, since I was the youngest, we were so close I often felt as if we were one. Nothing really mattered to me until I shared it with her, even the simplest thing was such fun to share with her. I remember the day I got that dreaded phone call that she had died, I immediately knew my life would never be the same. And it hasn't been. I do praise God, however, that He blessed me with my hubby and four sons. They give me a measure of hope and delight that I could have never known. But, nobody loves you like your mother, and I knew this to be true all of my life.

I praise you, God, for the many gifts you gave me through my mom. She taught me what real, unconditional love was and it lead me to You. I pray for all of my friends whom are mothers and I lift them up to your throne for a special measure of blessing that moms need. Happy Mother's Day, Ya'll!