LoveUbecause … a thought for Mother’s Day

So it is 4 o’clock in the morning.  I guess I am doing the cliché writer-artist thing – I had a thought in the middle of the night , so I thought it best to get up and write it down before the muddle of sleep throws it back into that  inaccessible part of my mind called  “forgetfulness”, “sleepiness”,  or wherever that part of my brain is, where everything that is clear can just as quickly be  lost with the break of day.

I have to admit I  found myself laying awake for the past few nights thinking about exactly the best thing to write – the right thing to write - because you see, today is Mother’s Day and for a variety of reasons I am unable to be with her. At least not in the physical sense,  like in  other years when I was  able to be “there”,  give her a hug and a small present – tell her that I love her.

I know that I will phone her later today and we will agree, as on other special occasions when distance separates us, that it is not so much the exact day that we celebrate something, but rather the fact that we didn’t forget that is most important. We will get together on another day, in the not too distance future, and have an “unofficial” celebration, as we always inevitably do. But for whatever reason, that doesn’t seem to be enough to satisfy me this year. There is something more – something more to be thought about and said.

So in the whirl of thought that is halfway between dream and wakefulness I have been thinking about all the important things that my mother has taught me, the qualities that I could write about that sums her all up and lets everyone know what a wonderful person she is - but that doesn’t seem enough either.

Just as we might go from mall to mall, shop to shop, looking for just the right gift for a special person, no, that is not the right one - not that it would not be a good one. Something more important needs to be said.

So it was, finally, early this morning that I realised what was perhaps more important - a better gift -  what was  better for her to know, better for her to hear than just “I love you – love you for who you are!”

It is from me, as her child. It is about my children, as her grand children. It is about legacy – her legacy as a mother. It is about what the very essence and nature of motherhood  should be – creating new generations and ensuring that they grow into good people, thoughtful people, respectful people, decent people.

Now don’t for a moment think that I don’t know I have more than my share of faults. The list is long! The wisdom of age seems to make me more aware of that every day.  But when I look at my children, I realise I often see my mother - her qualities, passions and values.  I see what  she taught me as her child and what I have tried my best to teach and share with them as her son.

It is their love of a traditional family dinner, their respect for nature, determination to try to do their best, love of animals and music, compassion for other people, thought to generosity and consideration of others - and yes, the realisation that that we are human and anything but perfect. Sometimes we fail, sometimes we fall, but knowing that your mother is there, either in person or in spirit, makes it just that bit easier to pick yourself up and try again – try to do better.

Seeing those values, that common thread, that legacy created by her,  shared  generation to generation - a gift given by good mothers and a gift returned to good mothers. Could there be any better?

Loving you, Ma, as always …  Happy Mother’s Day!

“A” the “O” in LVE!

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Posted in About Love and Life, Holiday and Seasonal
Tags: child, children, family, grand children, legacy, life, love, Mother's Day, parenting, values