"Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while but their hearts forever" ~ Author unknown
Mother's Day tomorrow. Another trend that's broken out its western confines and gone international. At least online. I seriously doubt any of the worthy mothers in my near neighburhood are aware it's "their" day. Or that they actually even have a day at all. Facebook has been throwing up a lot of reminders over the last few days and after taking my laptop in for an overnighter to get extra RAM added and Windows 7 installed, I finally succumbed today and put my mum's picture as my profile picture. Which led me on to feel the urge to put up a tribute blog post as well.
Everybody thinks their mum is unique and so do I. And though I know I've blogged about her a few times already, well, she deserves this. My mum was one of the intelligent people I've ever known, incredibly sharp and astute and very quick on the button about most everything. Despite that, she was also often unbelievably vulnerable especially after being widowed early with four young daughters to bring up. We used to have this picture of my parents on their wedding day; her veil slightly lifted away from her face by a breeze but both she and Dad oblivious to it, smiling ever so happily into the camera. My sister cut it out to fit into this tiny little picture frame that stood in our sitting room and I remember once looking at it in between dusting, and thinking how happy they looked and how unsuspecting they were that they had only 14 years to live together.
Strangely, though Mother's Day is a concept that we had only read about in western books, in the last year of her life, Mum got to celebrate her day. In Mumbai where we'd gone for her cancer treatment, we went to church on this Sunday morning which turned out to be the 8th of May and all the mothers in the congregation were each presented with a sweet red rosebud on a long graceful stem. What a lovely surprise that was for Mum, and a fitting tribute on her last ever Mother's Day.
My mother's gone too
ReplyDeleteBut she always comes back
In times of sadness and happiness
“A mother is a mother still, The holiest thing alive”
Yep, in times of sadness and happiness always there.
ReplyDeleteI know I would be devastated if my mother were to die, and I'd agonise over words unspoken and actions undone. I know all this, and yet, I find it so hard to express how I feel towards this woman to whom I owe everything. I tell myself that she knows without my having to say a thing, but I also know everyone needs to be told that they are appreciated and loved. Huis.
ReplyDeleteWe've been celebrating Mothers Day for years in the SA. When my mother died, it was a week or two before Mothers Day, and when Mothers Day came all my friends asked me why I wasnt carrying flowers. I remmembered feeling awkward as my friends had obviously forgotten about her death. Eversince, Mothers Day has brought on bitter sweet memories.
ReplyDeleteku2, I know what you mean. I never really told my mum either how much I loved her, not in so many words. It's a cultural thing, this being undemonstrative about your feelings. But like you say, we all need to be told we're appreciated and loved so it's good we're adopting these customs.
ReplyDeleteDaniel, I saw the picture in Vanglaini this morning of SA folks celebrating MD and I was saying to my sis that the flowers the kids were carrying to present their mums must have been arranged by their mums themselves :D Oh well, it's still a great tradition and kudos to you SA guys for incorporating it into your church activities. I wish the Mz Synod would too, at least in the children's Sunday School departments.
ReplyDeleteKinda late i guess but this one touched my heart so i couldnt just let it go without you knowing. Mothers are gems, and like you said, they are all unique. My mom, like your mom for you, is priceless. She is my mentor, my friend, my strength, my toughest boss, my most humble attendant and my greatest wish in life is to be her masterpiece!
ReplyDeleteThat's lovely, Jay-me, and I'm sure your mum is equally proud of you :)
ReplyDelete