Happy Day, Mom!

Today is Mother’s Day and what better way to celebrate than to remember some things that our mom taught us.  I’d like to thank my guest contributor this week...my sister, Hannah.  **Quick note:  Hannah supplied all of the sarcastic comments.  I tried to stop her, but she overpowered me.**

The following stories are all true and have been verified by multiple witnesses.

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Circa 1979

So, there we were...the family rolling up to the store.  As we get out of the car, my mom notices that she has mistakenly worn her house shoes out of the house.  Mortified, she contemplates going back home.  After only a moment, her creativity solved the issue for her.  

Mom proceeded out of the car and into the store with a newly acquired limp.  Yeah, that’s right...she faked a limp.  She said, “If people think that I have a hurt foot, they won’t think I’m crazy for wearing my house shoes in public.”  Because faking a limp isn’t crazy at all, huh mom?  The uncrazy thing would have been to just walk normally into the store.  Or even perhaps to never have worn house shoes outside in the first place.

She faked the limp all the way throughout the store.  Sometimes it was her right, sometimes it was her left.  Regardless of the side...she totally committed to her injury.  I’m not saying that she has a flair for the dramatic, but she had surgery some years later and now I’m wondering if she just didn’t want to go to that Parent/Teacher conference that was scheduled for me...um, I mean Hannah.  Actually, I mean, this is Hannah and it was my conference.

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Circa 1985

On the way to Hannah’s piano practice, my mom was sharing motherly advice on the importance of acting like a lady.  Apparently, this and many other conversations “took” because Hannah is quite the lady and quite the fashionista as well.  Still today, Hannah gets emergency fashion advice from mom.  Mom patiently waits as Hannah explains the “supposed” emergency and then gives advice for what to wear.  She doesn’t actually know what “White scarf” Hannah is referring to, but she does a great job pretending that she does...but, I digress.  Back to the Motherly advice...

A quick stop for a drive thru dinner was all that time would allow.  After her lady-like advice, my mom took a drink of her diet coke and . . . well . . . she let out an un-lady-like burp.  My sister started laughing and said, “That wasn’t very lady-like!”  My mom responded, “It’s ok, no one else is around!”  

Yes, mom - but you forgot that Hannah was around.  Is she scarred by that event today?  Well, we’re not sure.  It’s possible though...it is possible.  I wouldn’t say that she looks at you differently...It’s more like she looks at life differently.

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Circa 1989

My sister was 16 and ready for her first solo, out of town car trip.  She was actually only going about 20 miles away from home, but it was a big 20 since it was her first.  My mom was worried about Hannah’s trip and was fearful that she would get lost.  Not being confident that her verbal directions were enough, my mom decided to draw a map.  My mom grabbed a legal pad and drew our house and the street on which it sat.  She continued with drawing our street down the center of the page and until reaching an intersection.  Hannah should turn left and as my mom drew this she was annoyed that after only 1 turn, she was out of room on the paper.  Not to be outdone, she tore out the sheet and grabbed some tape.  With a new sheet, she continued the left turn onto the new page that had been taped to the left of the original sheet.  These taped page additions continued to the top, bottom and sides of each new page whenever a turn should take place.  When she was finished drawing, Hannah had her very own (almost life sized) 9 page fold out map to guide her to her destination.  I’m just glad that she wasn’t going further than 20 miles...I don’t think we had enough paper!  In that moment...I remember wanting to step in and ask how Hannah would find her way back home, but that would have been cruel.  It would have been cruel to my mom, to Hannah...and to countless trees.

What did Hannah and I learn from all of this?  What did our mom teach us?

1.  When faced with public embarrassment...Embellish the issue and then embrace it.  Life will be much more enjoyable if you just “go with it.”

2.  It may be important to be lady-like, but just make sure you are still yourself.  Enjoy life and don’t forget to have fun.

3.  There are times in life when you are not sure how to get to where you are going.  The journey is always more interesting than the destination.  Enjoy it.

Happy Mother’s Day mom!  We love you and thank you for being you...even the fake limping part of you.  You taught much.  You love much.  We are thankful and we love you.

Dad, don’t feel left out...Father’s Day comes in June...

JJ & HJR