Mother's Day Tribute

I am so thankful for my mother! She is without doubt the most influential person in my early life.

She was (and is) always there for us three children. She made sure we had the best of everything. By that, I mean love, good healthy food, and lots of fun. We were allowed to create—and to make the messes that come with creating. We were given lots of time to play outdoors. We went on some of the most wonderful camping trips, enabling us to see the rest of the country and experience its wonders. We were always encouraged to be the people God created us to be.

My brother, sister, and I were also disciplined. (Dare I use that word?) Mother and Daddy wanted us to grow up to be civilized, responsible citizens. They didn’t allow us to be crude and unmannerly. They encouraged us to be courteous, accepting, and to treat others as equals, always. This included the millionaires as well as street sweepers. No one was better than we were, and no one was less. We weren’t allowed to interrupt someone else when they spoke, and we were expected to keep quiet when adults were speaking. We were taught “Southern manners”: yes, Sir and yes Ma’am. We had to say “please” to get something and “thank you” when anything was given to us. We didn’t ever get anything we whined for.

My mother was a teacher, so naturally she valued education. When I was small, there were some kooky educational fads going around in the public schools. Mother started to teach again so that my brother and I could go to a quality private school for those first formative years. She taught me to read when I was three, and I started first grade while I was still five years old. In our private school, we had two important perks. One was French classes from second or third grade on, and the other was horseback riding lessons, starting in third grade. I loved both. Later, my brother and I went to public schools through high school, but we got a good 3-R’s background when we most needed it. (Our little sister was able to go to Christian schools when the Christian school movement was in full swing. My brother and I were ahead of that.)

My mother believes in God in a very personal way. She accepted Christ as her Savior when she was fifteen, and so, it was very important to her that we love God, too. She read us Bible stories out of Egermeier’s Bible Story Book, and we also had some adorable illustrated children’s books with prayers for children. I don’t remember not being in church. It was something routine in our lives. It was a priority to both my parents. My mother prayed about everything. We watched her ask God for His help in our everyday living. Her first response to any issue was prayer. And, we watched God answer those prayers—sometimes in miraculous ways.

My mother has always loved people. She often (an understatement) put people ahead of herself. She put everyone ahead of herself. My mother is the kind of person that people gravitate to. She has a sympathetic ear—because of her loving heart.

My mother has always adored my father. This gave us great security as well as a great example. It is one of the biggest gifts she gave to us, her children.

Mama always demonstrated her love to us. She was always there to hug, to listen, to put a Bandaid on, to understand—even when we must have been quite difficult to understand. She often tells us she loves us.

My mother will probably read this post, and she’ll think it wasn’t necessary. She will probably shake her head and say “Lou Ann” as only she can say it. She won’t think she deserves praise, but she does. I’m one of those extremely fortunate children who can rise up and call her mother blessed, because she truly is a virtuous woman. (Proverbs 31:28)

I am thankful for my mother!

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This is the first Mother’s Day for my daughter-in-law Roxana, who gave birth to our newest grandson in January. She asked God for her little boy, and they fittingly named him Samuel. He’s an adorable little blessing. Happy Mother’s Day!

Our daughter Becky is also a mother. Her toddler John is a bundle of energy and fun. Happy Mother’s Day, Becky!

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I understand that for some of my readers, Mother’s Day can be difficult. I’d like to share three blogs I read this week. They are for everyone. Johanna addresses helping women for whom Mother’s Day is challenging. Lorilyn writes about her experience of being a single adoptive mother. (Her blog offers some free Christian books at the end.) Amy, a childless woman, writes an open letter to pastors about sensitivity to all kinds of women on this special day. Each blogger expresses some valuable thoughts about Mother’s Day.