Mother's Day

Let me tell you about my sweet mother. First, she is 90 years old and is not well. She has lived with me since my father passed away in 2005. He was 91 years old. They both have lived a long life. They were married for 68 years. Only on a very few occasions did I hear them ever get mad at each other.

Mother always made sure we were ready for church. We always had clean clothes, and we looked nice. She worked a full time job. When she was younger she was a very good cook. I remember her frying oysters and we would look for pearls. We went on picnics a lot and she always had friends come in. On Sunday afternoons, our house was full of people. My sister and I always had a lot of kids to play with.

Also, my mother had a fear of something and everything. During World War II, she wouldn't let us stand close to the windows because a bomber may get over us and drop a bomb. We could not sleep next to a window because someone had kidnapped the Lindbergh baby. I don't know who would want a poor farmer's kids. We sure didn't have the money to pay a ransom. But those were her fears.

As she got older, she became afraid that she and Daddy would run out of money. She started saving and saving. One day I asked her why she was saving so much. Her reply was, "So you and your sister will have something when we're gone." I answered her by saying, "Well, I am going to take the money and go on a world's cruise." "You wouldn't do that, would you?" She answered in surprise. I put my hands on my hips and said, "Watch me." Nothing else was ever said about money.

Her cooking got bad in the last few years. She used substitutions for everything. Then she would say, "That didn't taste like yours." Then she would tell me that she did not have something, so she used something else. We never knew what we were eating. Sometimes it was good and sometimes not, but Daddy would eat it and not say a word.

Now, with her mind and body dwindling, I am happy to be able to take care of her. Yes, it gets nerve wracking at times, and I want to run away, but all in all, I am glad I have the honor to look after her. She is a very special lady.

Everyone should enjoy their mothers, while you have them. They don't live forever.