Happy Mother's Day

"What's your pleasure, oh Joy of my Life?" I asked mom this question about half an hour ago and she couldn't think of anything she'd rather do than come home for a nap.  Earlier today we went to Starbucks (for the first time in a coon's age) and then went to see the movie Water for Elephants.  It was a good outing, but by the time we got home I could tell that she was flagging. Now she is resting in the living room while I'm sitting here typing this entry. Mother's day has always been one of my favorite holidays. The flowers above came for her yesterday from my brother and his wife. Aren't they gorgeous? :) 

I want to share two of my favorite gifts I've given her in the past with you. One of them is a poem I wrote for her when I was 19, just after our lives had fallen apart and we were beginning to struggle through picking up the pieces and building a new relationship with each other:

Mother's Day 1989

Sometimes it seems as though it's difficult for me

To express my feelings for you;

Words don't seem enough.

So I listen to my heart and paint a picture:

When I'm alone in the dark

Alone and frightened

It is your hand that reaches out to comfort me;

When I am lost and confused and I can't find my way

It is your voice that rings out clearly to lead me home;

When my heart is breaking and everything is wrong

It is your eyes that glisten in an echo of my own tears;

When it seems as though the entire world is sick of me and wants me to crawl away

I know that I can come to you

And with you, I need no one else

Because I know that you will always care.

And when they praise me for a job well done

I know your heart is bursting with joy to share my happiness

When I'm unsure of myself and afraid to try

You are always there, and the simple beating of your heart

Gives me courage.

I know that I can accomplish anything my heart desires

And go anywhere my dreams want to lead me

And be successful there

Because even when I don't know, you do

And you have faith enough for the both of us.

"I love you" seems so cliche, it's hardly worth saying

But you are so much a part of me, and so important in my life

You will live in my heart forever: I know you will always be with me

I praise God every day I live that he allowed me to be your child

Because no one else could have done me any better, not ever

And I will always be here for you, whenever you need me

Because I love you, Mom.

It's as true today as it was then.

The other gift I want to share with you is a locket I purchased for her in the mid 1990's. In it I placed the high school graduation pictures of myself, my mom, and my grandma, along with the legend, "Mother's Love is Eternal."

Happy Mother's Day to all of you from both of us.