MOM

I will always remember my mother in many ways as will all of you who knew her. Her passing this year leaves me with a void and mixed emotions. I loved her and the life she led and the influence she made on everyone besides her sons who loved her so much. I would like to share the presentation I made on her 85th birthday as it was one of the memories that meant so much. I remember when I asked my mother what she wanted on her 85th birthday and she quickly said "A party". So we gave her a great party and this is one of the moments from that day.

It has been said that there are three ages of women: Youth, Middle Age and "you haven't changed." Change is the name of the game! Consider the following:

Mom was not before the difference between the sexes was discovered, but she was before SEX CHANGE was the discussion of the day. She was born before frozen food, penicillin, polio shots, radar, credit cards and ballpoint pens. For her, time share meant togetherness, a chip meant a piece of wood, hardware meant hardware and software wasn't even a word. She was born before pantyhose and drip dry clothes, before icemakers and electric dishwashers, clothes dryers and electric blankets.

It was the custom to find a man, fall in love, get married(not necessarily in that order)having children came after, not before and divorce was not an answer.

Some wore Peter Pan collars and thought a deep cleavage was something butchers did? It was before the wine craze, disposable diapers and the Jefferson nickel. When she was in elementary school, pizzas, cheerios, frozen orange juice and instant coffee were unheard of. Fast food was what you ate during lent and having a ..gay.. time was definitely OK.

Cigarette smoking was unfortunately fashionable, today it's just another addiction and might keep you from getting a good meal. Grass was mowed, coke was something you drank on a hot day and pot was something you cooked in? Mom was before day care centers, house husbands, baby sitters, computer dating, and the term "making out" referred to how you did on the exam.

There were five and ten cent stores where you could buy things for five and ten cents. For a nickel you could ride the train, bus, or a ferry, or make a phone call, if you could find a pay phone. It would buy you a coke, or stamps to mail one letter and two post cards. You could get a new Chevy or Ford coupe for $695, but who could afford that? A pity, because gas was eleven cents a gallon. I remember when the first TV came into our neighborhood in 1950 and how special it was to see all of those folks in real black and white! Most of the time we listened to Amos and Andy and Jack Benny on the radio, on a hot humid night, sitting on the sun porch, talking in between the Ivory soap commercial.

Mom had a way to always do with what she had. She had a habit to put a little away in a drawer for that neighbor or friend who might need a birthday card or small present someday. I always thought of that drawer as the "prize drawer." I remember it well and how often the present that was given to her from another person found its way in and out of that "drawer" to make someone else a bit happier and who needed it more, as Mom always thought. You see we never had the money during those days to buy someone else a present, so Mom just saved a little from what she had received and passed it on so someone else would not be forgotten. "It is better to give then to receive" Our first lessons in Christian sharing came from Mom, who did it so well and with such humility and character.

I am told that there were lots of girdles, I mean real girdles with garters on them, petticoats and I guess even serge bloomers for gym in school(You young folks will have to look all of those words up). When cookies came to the house the container was returned full with her best contribution to the neighborhood recipes. The best the kids could offer when they came home, was to call out "MOM!" and present the laundry. But that's not our fault, we were always distracted by the smell of apple pie cooking and had to get to the eating.

I heard that there was great soft music, Toscanini, Schubert, Beethoven, Tennessee Ernie Ford and you could even hear songs that had lyrics. Of course there was Rock and Roll, but that wasn't music was it Mom? There were saddle shoes and really neat cars with special seats called "rumble". I guess the highlight was when Ray Noble played "The very thought of you" and you got a buzz, oops! jumped about 50 years there with that thought.

I continue to guess Mom was in the springtime of senility... She must have been some kind of misfit. I had never known her to go into consciousness raising, or sensitivity training. You never saw her jogging, too busy working those hard days and nights to feed a family and she still wanted me to pump her gas for her, imagine!
Forget about Yoga, veggies or punk. Her idea of a good time was to recycle(yes I said recycle, she knew the word)some old thing into beautiful gifts and treasures. She left a legacy of quilts, stitchery, crocheting and homemade crafts that are being enjoyed today and perhaps forever by many friends and certainly all of her family.

The best part I remember about my mother was how she never missed a night, on her knees, to pray to her LORD, at the end of the day. Those knees have bent many times beside her bed with prayers of supplication and intercession and she was always a spiritual inspiration to all who knew her. Some people preach about how to live life according to the Bible and others like Mom just don't think about it, they just believe it was the only way. Our mother is truly the "GIFT THAT KEEPS GIVING" AND EVEN AS SHE IS WITH THE LORD SHE WILL BE TO US THAT SPECIAL GIFT.

Tell me MOM "Is Heaven beautiful, can you touch every star in the sky? As you are walking down those streets of gold are you watching the angels fly? In those mansions up there do you sit with the saints and marvel at the majesty of GOD"(Chaya)

We miss you so very much Mom. We will see you again in our Father's House. How beautiful it must all be.