This is a hard post for me to write. You see, this will be the first Mother's Day that I will spend without my mother.
Since she passed away on September 29, 2021, I have experienced a lot of "firsts" without her:
The "first" Halloween and seeing the grandchildren and great-grandchildren dressed up
The "first" Thanksgiving
My "first" birthday without her
The "first" Christmas
Her "first" birthday
And now, the "first" Mother's Day without her.
My mom suffered a lot of physical ailments throughout a lot of her adult life. Some were undoubtedly the result of her having polio when she was a girl. She worked hard all of her life. She raised us kids and took care of my dad when he began to have memory problems.
Her physical health gradually deteriorated to the point that she kept having falls. They were increasing in intensity and it got to the point that my dad and I couldn't get her back up when she fell. We had to call the ambulance at least three times to help her up after a fall. She ended up in the hospital after each fall.
I think her last fall, which happened about 6 months before she died, was what did her in. She fell and hit her head. She had a bruised head for months. (I bet if we had access to Pure&Clean products we could have helped her injuries heal faster, though.)
The photo at right was taken about two months before she died.
I'm not telling you this story to depress you or anything like that. I am telling you this story because moms are important.
I know all of us moms have our faults, but most of us do our best to raise good kids, keep good homes, have careers, love our significant others, and do all we can to give our children a brighter, happier future.
I know my mom did.
Growing up with dreams . . .
Much like me, my mom was a dreamer. She had a vivid imagination and I think that explains my love of writing and creating works with words.
She and her brothers would travel all over the country and never leave the driveway of their home! She was the oldest and had five brothers.
My mom would tell us stories about the car adventures that they went on (while never leaving the parking spot). Later, she told us about real stories that she and her brother would go on.
I think my mom was an adventurer at heart.
Meeting and falling in love with my dad was probably one of the biggest adventures she ever embarked on.
My dad was a hard worker like my mom. He was also quite handsome. He still is, but that's another story!
I love this photo of them at their wedding. They were both so young and happy and had the entire rest of their lives in front of them. They could do whatever they wanted to do.
They chose to have children and raise us on a family farm in Minnesota!
It was the best life. I didn't always think so, because running a farm was a lot of work for everyone including us kids. But we did it and I think it made us better people. We understood the value of a hard day's work and the fruits of those labors when we could all sit at the table and enjoy a meal together.
Later, after all the chores were done, we might sit together for an hour or so and watch an episode of Bonanza or Little House on the Prairie or The Wonderful World of Disney.
Whatever we did, we did it together.
My mom and dad did everything together while mom was alive. The photo below is one of my favorites of them. They always did things like this! It brings a tearful smile to my face when I look at it now. But that was mom.
Since she has passed on, I have come to realize and appreciate so many things about her. You know, the things you miss when they are gone.
The phone calls...even if she did have the habit of calling exactly when I sat down for supper almost every night.
The road trips.
The holidays.
Every day...
The best Mother's Day ever . . .
So, you may be asking yourself how I could think of the upcoming Mother's Day celebration as the "best Mother's Day ever." Well, I will tell you it isn't without pain. I miss that woman that I called "Mom" "Mommy" Mama." Some days are spent just remembering and missing her and crying. But most days, I try to live out the lessons she taught me. I think of the good times and the bad ones, too. Because I believe that we can learn just as much, if not more, from the low times in our lives as we can from the good times.
I hope that you have the best Mother's Day, too, whether your mom is still with you in person or if you will be spending the day remembering her!
Something special . . .
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