Gifts From My Mother

Fall always makes me think of my mom.  She loved fall the best of all seasons and she loved to go get apples from every orchard in the county.  She loved the leaves, the smells, the way the air felt and she gave that love to me.  Mom gave me many gifts over the years and I am grateful I was able to share that with her before she left earth school.  This is part of a letter I sent Mom on one Mother's Day.  (Picture is of Mom and baby me)

Dear Mom,

I want to thank you for the many gifts you given me over the years.  Not the material things that wear out or get put in a box somewhere but the real gifts of love.  Do you remember watching the "Wizard of Oz" and eating popcorn drenched in butter and "sticky spoon fudge"? (Mom could never get fudge right) Those things taught me to enjoy movies and the "goofs" in life.

Do you remember reading "The Quick Running Squash", "The Teeny Tiny Woman", and the "Snow Princess" to me?  I do like it was yesterday.  Thank you for reading so many stories with all the drama and feelings you could.  It brought the books to life and taught me to enjoy reading and drama.  I can still hear you reading, "I    think    I    can ,   I   think   I   can".

I used to love watching you play that old beat up piano we had when I was 6 or 7 years old.  I can remember your fingers jumping all over the keyboard playing boogies and you played such wonderful melodies like "Rhaspsody in Blue".  You sang a lot and some pretty silly songs, too.  The radio or the records were always on.  You listened to everything, Bach, Hank Williams, Elvis, Frank Sinatra and the Beatles.  I could never ever thank you enough for the gift of music.  Music has always been my best friend and it is always there for me in my darkest times and the best times.

You also gave me the gift of sitting still.  I sit out in my yard and watch the birds, the river and the roses grow.  I watch the ants go marching by with their prize morsel of food.  I watch the butterflies and the breeze gently blow in the birch trees.  And if I am really lucky and sit very still a garden snake slithers by in the grass.  In winter I sit very quiet and I can hear the snow falling.  A lot of people don't know you can hear a snowflake but I do because you taught me.  And I still make at least one snow angel every year.  I do all that with a deep appreciation of nature and a real sense of God the Father.

How do I ever thank you for giving me so many wondrous gifts?  They say the best way to thank someone is to pass it on, I have done that. Your gifts to me are now spanning the generations to my children and my grandchildren.  When my children and grandchildren all came home in March one of the first things we did was get out the old books and I read to them, we played the stereo, popped popcorn and sang silly songs and told spooky stories.

I know many years from now when you and I are long forgotten these gifts will live on in my family thanks to you.  I love you Mother, not because I have to, but because I want to.  Just like your gifts... You didn't have to.

Love,

Linda