Mother's Day 2007 Revisited

Mother's Day 2007 is past. Motherhood has amazing potential for happiness -- and an equal potential for pain and grief. I know that some mothers had a day filled with anxiety over the health, safety, or happiness of a child. For some mothers the day was lost in grief. There are, no doubt, mothers who felt neglected and spent the day alone and lonely. For a few mothers this Mother's Day was their last day on Earth. My heart filled with love and empathy goes out to those mothers and their families.

This year, I am one of those other mothers. Let me tell you a little bit about Mother's Day 2007 in my little world.

I, the definitive non-cook, invited my mother (a fantastic cook BTW) and any other family who could come to have lunch with us. I had acceptances from my Mother, My brother and his wife and daughter, and our son and his family. So we planned on a meal for 11 to be served as soon after church as everyone could get here. My DH and I spent the day Saturday cleaning house. I spent Saturday evening cooking and doing initial preparation for the meal.

Sunday morning before church I got the vegetables cooked, the tea made, the tables set, and the main dish prepared to put in the oven just before we left for church. I was concerned because I thought that I had prepared entirely too much food for only 11 people. Estimating quantity is one of several things I always have trouble doing in food preparation.

Our pastor, as usual, did a wonderful job with the Sunday worship service, and the church gave each mother a potted begonia. When we got home, dinner was ready to put on the table. We placed our gift begonias on the big table as a centerpiece. As we waited for our scheduled guests to arrive, we saw a familiar, but unexpected, red SUV pull into our driveway. Our daughter and son-in-law and our three precious grandchildren had made the 2 hour drive to join us! We had thought they would be unable to make the trip! What a wonderful surprise!!! Squeals, hugs and kisses all around!

My brother, his wife, and their daughter, came in bearing two beauiful antique vases filled with flowers as gifts for Mother and me. I was delighted to have a centerpiece for the serving table, and we all enjoyed the flowers throughout the day.

We spent the day eating, visiting, laughing, playing. The six grandchildren, ranging in age from 6-14 played softball and football in the front yard, joined occasionally by one or more of the adults. We viewed digital photos on the TV screen, enjoying seeing pics of the oldest nieta, all dressed up for her eighth grade dance the night before. Oh, my! There's another story.

We also got to have our kindergartner read the book he wrote for his mother. How sweet (and laughable) that he thinks that "the laundry" is her favorite thing to do! They also brought along the framed art that their children did in art class at school. We may have the next generation of great artists right here in our family! I am chagrined that I didn't think to take photos of the art to post here.

Our niece filled us in a little on her upcoming trip to Africa. She will be there for 5 weeks on a college-sponsored mission trip to distribute mosquito netting. She is home after completing her first year of college.

Evening came much too soon, the red van had to return from whence it came so that life can grind on. The other vehicles also returned to their respective parking spaces and their occupants to their homes. The house was quiet and lonely again. I took my large glass of iced tea, settled into the soft chair on the sun porch, closed my eyes, and reviewed the day thankfully. I thanked God for the blessing of a Godly and loving mother. I realized how blessed I am to have had the privilege of sharing Mother's Day with her and with three other mothers who are so important to me - the mothers of my beautiful grandchildren and the mother of one of my favorite nieces! I prayed for other important mothers in my life:

• My older sister - a mother who is on a business trip to Poland right now, away from her children and grandchildren
• My middle sister - a mother at home, I hope, with her children and grandchildren who is busy building a new home
• My other middle sister - a mother out of town to attend the college graduation of her fourth child. She got to spend the day with three of her children and with her husband's mother
• My youngest sister -a mother heavily burdened with concern for her son, my dear and precious nephew, who is fighting in Iraq.
• My youngest sister-in-law - a mother getting ready for the wedding of her daugher, my darling niece, next Saturday.

Motherhood in itself, contrary to much that is said about it, does not automatically translate into sainthood; but my personal experience with mothers, the mothers who are closest to me, these mothers I have mentioned and others among my personal acquaintance -- well, these come pretty darn close to achieving that classification.

Sitting here on the sun porch with my iced tea in hand, it seems to me that Mother's Day 2007, here in my little world, was an unqualified success.