Isn’t she beautiful? Growing up, my mom rarely wore makeup and usually wore jeans and t-shirts. She’s never been the mom with a closet full of dresses and cosmetics all over the bathroom countertop, walking by you in a cloud of perfume. And yet, without trying, she is always one of the most beautiful women in a room.
When I playback my childhood memories in my head, I see snow forts and sunshine, I smell big, shaggy dogs and barns full of horses, sawdust, and hay, and I hear children laughing.
My mom is about as self-deprecating as a woman can get, and I know she tends to focus on what she failed to do as a mother rather than on her successes. But whatever failures she may be holding on to, they pale in comparison to what she was able to accomplish.
Our mothers are our first teachers in this world. They influence our perception of our world from the time we are born. Motherhood comes with a mountain of responsibility. Of these responsibilities, I believe the most important revolve around love; teaching your children that they are loved and teaching them to show love toward others.
My mother taught me love through books. I remember listening to her read Curious George books, Dr. Seuss books, and of course, Where the Wild Things Are. I look back and see that she always encouraged me to keep reading; Little House on the Prairie, Anne of Green Gables, and I even remember the first time she gave me a Jane Austin book. It was Pride and Prejudice and I hated it, (at the time, of course. Now I LOVE IT). I am thankful my mother taught me to love books because I believe that books enrich our lives. They take us on adventures, they introduce us to new friends, they teach us about the human experience, and they remind us that we are not alone in anything we may be feeling.
My mother taught me love through nature. Our family lived in Fairbanks, Alaska when I was just a little girl. What I remember of Fairbanks is mostly my brothers and I decked out in our snow suits, playing with the neighborhood kids in a world full of snow. We would build tunnels, pull each other around on the sled, and just play until we dropped. We then moved to Rapid City, South Dakota. While we lived there, my parents bought a small house in the country with some acreage that even had a little creek. I remember how soft the baby bunnies we had were when I held them, I remember the crazy turkey next door that would follow us to the bus stop, I remember my brothers catching salamanders and lizards, I remember playing in the hay pile at the neighbor’s farm, and I remember riding our pony, Sassy, bareback all over the yard. I remember falling completely in love with horses and riding and everything that goes with it, especially the time it afforded me to spend with my mom.
My mother taught me love through her honesty. When my mom was still a young mother, with a military husband, far away from the world of South Texas that she had grown up in, she lost her own mother. Then she lost her father. And I remember her being sad for a long time. I remember my dad not knowing what to do to make her happy. But, eventually, she was happy again. And what I learned from all of that pain that my mom went through is that it is okay to be sad. It is okay for the people in your life to know that you are sad, even your children. From my mom’s trials, I learned how the Atonement works in our lives to heal us even when we think we are broken. I also learned that successful marriage requires support, patience, endurance, forgiveness, and service.
My mother taught me love through acceptance. In 2nd grade, I had a light purple sweater with tiny teddy bears printed all over it. I loved that sweater. I loved it so much I wore it pretty much every single day. And my mom let me. Then, in 4th grade, I had a Dallas Cowboys t-shirt that I loved so much that I wore it almost every single day. And my mom never said a word. Then, when I was in high school, I went through the 1990s grunge phase, and I wore old corduroy pants and flannel shirts, and somehow, my mom managed to keep her mouth shut.
I am so thankful that I was raised by a mother that loved me enough to let me be myself. Thanks Mom for everything you do for me! Happy Mother’s Day, I love you!
