This coming Sunday is Mother's Day. I have been thinking a lot about my mom this week. Although everyone says we looked just alike, we were different in so many ways. She was quick with a response, and I'm a "muller". She was practical and efficient. I'm ready to throw off practicality at the first twinge of emotion. Her words were right to the point, whether shaping you up, encouraging you, or giving you advice. My words are almost always tentative and soft, with my best efforts at not ruffling feathers or hurting your feelings. She was a "head person" and I am a "heart person".That being said, in all the really important ways I am blessed to be like her.
*She was a true partner to Dad. She didn't always agree with him (he was a heart person too) but she never criticized him in front of anyone else. She stood by his decisions and she was always supportive, even in the hard times. She truly loved him and showed it in a lifetime of shared commitment.
*She was fiercely loyal to family and friends...yes, she could chill you with a single stare but let an "outsider" come against you and she always was there to defend you. She had close friends of 60+ years and many others that she gathered along the way. She loved them fiercely, although you wouldn't catch her saying it much!! She was content to show you by her actions instead.
*She was trustworthy. If she said she would, she would...no matter what! Whether it was inconvenient, painful, or even against her better judgement, if she committed to it she did it.
*She was generous. She supported her church, several missionaries, family and friends at times, and a few "causes" that she deemed worthy. (One of her last requests was that I make sure to let her missionaries know that she had gone on to heaven and that's why she stopped supporting them!)
*She was organized. She knew what she had, where it was, and exactly how it was to be used.
*She was thrifty. She never bought anything new to replace something she already had, even if hers was old & outdated. I once tried to throw away a 5 gallon container of syrup that had 1/4 inch left in the bottom that was crystallized and got my hand slapped! I was in my 40s at the time!
But of all the qualities that made her who she was, the one thing that I will always love most is that she loved God. Every morning she read her Bible and had her quiet time while drinking tea at the breakfast table. She served Him faithfully in choir for almost 70 years, as co-leaders of youth group when I was a kid, as Senior Center and Women's ministry help, as kitchen crew...whatever needed doing is what she did and even when she was really sick, she continued to serve until someone came along to replace her. She was a background person whose greatest embarrassments were having someone honor her. She served out of duty and out of love, and she didn't ever feel like the things she did were worthy of recognition...but they were.
I think one of the greatest accomplishments for a wife and mom are the verses in Proverbs 31 that say "Her husband praises her in the gates,... and her children rise up and bless her!"
At the end of his life, Dad still wanted her at his side, and not only her children but her many grandchildren all loved & honored her for who she was and how they loved her!
I still miss you, Mom, but if I can finish my course as well as you did I will consider myself blessed beyond measure! Happy Mother's Day!!
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