Today I have no tears for her. I have complete confidence and assurance that she is experiencing a rest so great that all I can think is how selfish it would be of me to want her back. It doesn’t make me miss her any less but she is where she should be. And I am just thankful for the time I had her here. She was my mama! So Happy Mother’s Day in heaven!
But there are three reasons that made me mama. Such precious gifts from God. Such enormous responsibility. Such wonderful memories.
She came around 10:20 on a Tuesday morning. Summertime heat! Full of personality from day one. Her hair should have been the clue that this one would be bold. From two years old she became a teacher. Correcting classmates on the proper pronunciation of “green.” “Ms. Sarah,” she said, “it’s not ‘gween,’ it’s ‘green.’” Okay, then. Make no mistake, she chose the right profession. She had her daddy wrapped around her little finger from the first moment he saw her. Smitten! And this mama has had a front row seat in watching this young woman twirl and dance and love and work and serve God. Thanking God for her!
He had a mind of his own from the beginning. No matter how much planning his daddy and I tried to do for him, he just wouldn’t have it. The morning after two accounting finals in my senior year of college, he decided to come at 8:32 with the doctor fresh from the shower. She had literally been there 20 minutes. Dripping hair. No time to do anything but deliver the little impatient red-head. He was the only grandchild that my mama witnessed being born. I will never forget the concern on her face for me. I think the realization of what her daughters experienced on the previous three grands and her very own experiences all flooded back in that quick delivery. A lot of memories in 20 minutes!
He made his presence known wherever we went. Quiet and loud all at the same time. Only a few people could claim his devotion as a child. But this one would hold my hand as we snorkeled. And now he is in college, taking accounting classes. I watch with amazement and wonder at what God will do in his life. Thanking God for him!
And we thought we were done. God had other things in mind. Compassionate God gives compassionate gifts. My gentle giant of a boy. Age definitely makes a difference for a mama! He was an early afternoon delivery. A little bigger than the first two. What a complete surprise was he! The difference of personalities between the three is amazing. Similar to his sister in some ways but similar to his brother in others and yet completely different than both. He would stay underneath his daddy 24/7 if he could. He will go kayaking with me. But let daddy say let’s go and he is gone. His daddy’s sense of humor, his sister’s compassion for others, his brother’s little brother, his mama’s apple-cheeked, freckle-faced son. Thanking God for him!
So missing my mama but thanking God for her. But today, I get to be mama. Today, I get to thank Him for the three He blessed me with. I get to thank Him for being in control because this mama can’t be mama without Him. Happy Mother’s Day to me. And you.
