May 8, 2010

Mother's Day


The older I get, the more painfully aware I am of friends who have lost their mothers. While I may not be a mother myself, I am blessed enough to still have my mom, who will be the focus of Mother's Day for me. 

I could tell you how old my mom is, but then I'd have to kill you, so I'll leave that part out. That's actually one of the things that makes Mom so special. It's not that she minds her age, but she knows that we all have preconceived notions about age that we impose on others. She's not about to let anyone do that to her. When she turned 40, she had an idea in her head of what 40 looked like, and she made up her mind then that she was going to defy that image. She's been doing it ever since.

She's been Nana for the last 36 years, and now that she has become a great-grandmother, she'll still be Nana. No Grandma or heaven-forbid, Great-Grandma business for my mom. My 30-something nephews tell people about the movies they've seen with her and no one can believe anyone has such a cool Nana.

While most of Mom's peers show their age in their fashion choices, Mom's still wearing shoes that would make Carrie Bradshaw drool with envy. (When she cleans out her closet, my sister, my niece, and I line up to try on the shoes destined for the resale shop as though we were Cinderella trying on the glass slipper. "Oh, they're so cute, please let them fit!") While many women she knows need their husbands to drive them to the mall, my mom recently organized a road trip on which she drove 3 friends to Branson.

Mom was married for most of her adult life, but she has also been single for significant periods. She was single for 13 years following her divorce from my dad, and she has been widowed for the last 8 years. At no point has Mom ever been needy, or acted as though she needed another person to make her feel whole. No one could have been a better role model for my sister and me.

There were tremendous challenges following the divorce, not the least was losing everything in a fire...with no insurance. She dealt with that, just as she has dealt with every other challenge in her life, with faith.

Only a month after my stepfather died, she had a hip replacement and recovered with a speed that astonished even the doctor. It didn't surprise her children though, because we have seen Mom's faith and determination all of our lives. It's that faith and determination, along with the defiance of stereotypes about age, that have been Mom's greatest gifts to her children and grandchildren.

Thank you, Mom, and Happy Mother's Day!

10 comments:

  1. wow! what an amazing woman! next time she weeds out
    her shoe closet, let me know. i wear a size 8, used to be
    6 1/2. what's up with that?

    we ARE very lucky to still have our moms.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a GREAT photo!!! Thank God we still have our moms.
    Thanks for sharing!
    Becky

    ReplyDelete
  3. This was just delightlful! I'm so glad you stopped by today so I could hop over and visit your blog.

    I was laughing out loud at your descriptions, and thinking what a great woman she is! So full of life and fun. This was a beautiful tribute to your mother and I know she will be blessed!

    As to your title, 'Single and Sane'... I already know I like you! You've got plenty of spunk and it sounds like you've got more than a few of your mom's genes!

    I'll be back. btw, I think you might like the post I did on my mom and dad's love story. She lived way in the northern part of Norway and had told God... 'there wasn't a prospect in her town'... and God sent a minister from America, my dad... here's the link if you feel like visiting.
    http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/2010/01/their-storychapter-1.html

    Blessings!

    Sonja

    ReplyDelete
  4. It is so wonderful reading about wonderful moms and their amazing relationships with their daughters!
    I hope that your Mom reads this post and takes great joy in the fact that she has passed on her strength and tenacity to you, not to mention the most important thing- her faith!
    What a Blessing!!!
    Thanks for sharing about your Mom, and enjoy her!
    Joyce

    ReplyDelete
  5. Have a wonderful Mother's Day! Thank you for sharing such a beautiful tribute to your mom. She is an exemplary role model!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great photo of you and your mom!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks to all of you for your sweet comments! Mom has read the post, and your comments, too, which meant as much to her as the post itself! Thanks for helping Mom feel so special!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your Mom sounds awesome.... oh and being a 'mom' doesn't mean yiu gave birth to a child it just means yiu are important to a child. One of my daughters friends reminded me of that this year.

    ReplyDelete
  9. you are too funny to say that about my hair!

    ReplyDelete