Another year has passed and we have arrived again at my mother's birthday. I committed to giving thanks every day in November, but I'm going to extend it one more day and express how grateful I am for her.
My mom and I in 1974.
Believe it or not, my mother is not perfect. She made mistakes when raising my brother and I. She has broken my heart more then once, as I'm sure I have broken hers. No, none of us are beyond reproach in the choices we make in our lives.
Believe it or not, my mother is not perfect. She made mistakes when raising my brother and I. She has broken my heart more then once, as I'm sure I have broken hers. No, none of us are beyond reproach in the choices we make in our lives.
But overall she did so much more for me then your average parent. I took it for granted. Not in the way some really spoiled rotten kids take people for granted, but it was because I didn't know the difference. I thought that ALL moms functioned that way!
Like her sitting through almost EVERY tap dancing class I took - every week - for 10 freaking years! And going to all my recitals and plays and band concerts. You know how many times I took the bus with the other kids to the parades I marched and played clarinet in? Or to a vocal competition? Or to a swim meet I was competing in?
The answer is not zero, but it's pretty friggin close!!! I didn't need to be on the bus because she would drive me and stay for the whole thing.
Just this morning Marc was showing me how to operate the propane heater we just installed in our workout room. And I realized all that Marc does in the household and I thought that I wouldn't be able to keep this house if - perish the thought - something happened to him. I couldn't do all that he does! Well guess what? I am the exact age now that my mother was when my Dad died. And she not only maintained the house, she did it through her grief and working full time and raising 2 kids!!
She could have given up. She didn't.
I'm not the terribly sentimental type and I have trouble expressing my emotions, so I guess I don't tell her thanks enough. But I hope she knows - or she will after reading this - that I get how lucky I was to have had a mother like her growing up. And while I'll never have my own kids and be able to emulate her as a mother, I can aspire to be the loyal, caring, and strong person that she is.
And the next time we get in a fight, I'll try to remember this!!!
Fantastic post!
ReplyDeleteLovely, it brought tears in my eyes. Mother is a the best relationship. I will thank my mother today for taking so much pains in bringing me up.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Finn Felton