Sunday, May 13, 2012

Happiness is...having an amazing mom.

I've tried to come up with something cutesy and quirky to post about my mom on this celebratory mom's day but my brain is just not cooperating.  Instead I'm going to have to go with the drab and prosaic praise...I have the best mom in the world.  Now, some of you may think that your mom is the best, but I'll have to argue with you.  You're wrong. Because mine is truly the best.

Not only did she (literally) risk her life giving birth to myself and various and sundry siblings she has continued to put it on the line in different ways for each of us since then. She has faced down angry teachers and bullies, gotten in cars driven by us before we were licensed and aware of what we were actually doing, sat through countless recitals, performances and awards programs, eaten our cooking, attempted to teach us how to scrub toilets and bathtubs, kissed our boo-boos, listened to our heartaches and dramas and dealt with all of our teen angst (which some of us have never grown out of!)

Most importantly, she's stepped back and let us make our own mistakes. She's been there to help pick us up when we fall and guide us back to where we needed to be without condemning or judging, just loving and nurturing and teaching each step of the way. And when we make the same mistakes again and again she has had infinite patience and continues to do so day after day, answering with prayers and encouragement and a shoulder to cry on.

She has taught by example how to serve others and put the Lord first and I am eternally grateful for her models of sacrifice and faith. I'm not much, but all the good things that I am I can trace directly back to her.  I love you mom!

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention all the mother figures I've had in my life, and I've had many.  Aunts, grandmothers, teachers, neighbors, youth leaders and more have all stepped in at moments when they've been most needed and offered love, support, and examples that have shaped my soul. I'm grateful for friends and contemporaries who are now mothers themselves, raising up children who give me faith and hope in the future of our world. Thanks to you we are in good hands!

Hopefully you've taken a moment today to voice your appreciation for the women who act as mothers in your life. If not, there's still time. Call them, thank them, and do something to show them how much you care.

A few closing thoughts, much more eloquently and beautifully stated than I could hope to attempt:

Motherhood is near to divinity.  It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind.
~Howard W. Hunter


A mother has far greater influence on her children than anyone else, and she must realize that every word she speaks, every act, every response, her attitude, even her appearance and manner of dress affect the lives of her children and the whole family. It is while the child is in the home that he gains from his mother the attitudes, hopes, and beliefs that will determine the kind of life he will live and the contribution he will make to society.
~N. Eldon Tanner


All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
~Abraham Lincoln

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