I have to give some props to my mom, so she gets a post all of her own. She’s pretty amazing. We don’t always see eye to eye but I love her and she has so many wonderful qualities that I admire very much.
Over the last year or so my brother and his family have had some major challenges to face, some of which are no one’s fault and others which they’ve brought upon themselves. But whatever the reason for their trials it’s hard to watch people you love suffer. And throughout this last year my feelings about the situation have been all over the place: fear, pity, compassion, guilt, anger, gratitude, hopelessness, frustration, impatience, hopefulness, indifference… I’m not proud of the way I’ve felt but there it is.
But not my mom. She is steadfast. I worry so much that she’s sometimes being too generous, too selfless and that she’s not taking care of herself. Even though I don’t always agree with it her generosity is faultless. She is constantly giving. Even when my sister-in-law was calling her 12 times (no joke) a day she never complained, always answered her phone, and just listened patiently, offered help and comfort and a calm perspective. That is amazing to me.
And she works tirelessly. She works as a full time accountant; she makes quilts and pajamas for her friends’ kids and her grandkids; she cooks and she bakes… like all the time, she has a garden, she volunteers… and the list goes on. She also spends one evening a week and one weekend day (if not more) doing the book keeping for an elderly friend of our family. But she doesn’t just do her book keeping. She helps her around her house, gets up extra early to drive her to and from the airport once every other month or so, is helping her get one of her other houses ready to sell and is a friend that she can always count on. Plus she is always helping my grandmother and great grandmother. And of course, she never complains. She’s a star.
Honestly, half the time I’m convinced that I must have been switched at birth, but I’m definitely lucky to have such a wonderful mother.
“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.”
Washington Irving
a flash of delight 