Here and There

Yesterday was Mother's Day.  Since 1992, this has not been a favorite day of mine, as this was the year my mother left us unexpectedly at the age of 68.  I was 35 at the time.  This past December we also lost my mother-in-law, who had become like a second mother to me.  Finally, my husband realized how hard the day is when you don't have a mother to honor.

Despite the fact neither of us had a mother to celebrate with, we had a full day.  After church we gathered with four of my husband's ten siblings and their spouses, plus a couple of the grown children for a BBQ at his brother's home.  This is the house they grew up in, and so it had a close connection for all of them as they remembered their mother.

In the afternoon, while my husband and son napped, I decided to do some walking, taking along my mother's Black Hills gold ring as a piece of her to carry with me.  Although it is not her "Mother's Ring", I feel it represents her and her children well.  There is one large leaf, and four smaller ones.  Two of the smaller leaves are green, and two are pink, which to me represent the two boys and two girls she gave birth to.  There is also a cluster of small dots where perhaps another leaf could have been added, which speaks to me of the two miscarriages and one stillborn my parents experienced prior to the birth of my siblings and I.

As I walked, I smiled, wondering what it would be like to take a walk with her now.  There are so many questions I would like to ask, and it would be fun to hear her perspective on the state of the world right now.  I thought about her celebrating Mother's Day in heaven with her mother, my dear grandma.  [Do they even do that?  It's hard to know.  I do know they are referred to as a "cloud of witnesses" in Hebrews 12:1, so that speaks to me of them witnessing our lives unfold, so perhaps they know what day we are celebrating here on earth??]

Further along in the walk I decided to call my husband's aunt who is about the age my mother would be now.  She is in our local nursing home, and for now they are not allowed visitors, so I try to connect with her every few days.  It was good to take a few minutes and brighten her day, and our conversation certainly brightened mine!

My favorite part of the day came at the same time my daughter and her family arrived from their home, which is about an hour from ours.  Her family includes a husband, three grandsons, and one granddaughter, and their presence made the rest of my day so special.  We enjoyed pizza together, shared a lot of laughs, and the grandkids and I played a game of Parcheesi together.  They gave me two very special gifts, a frame in which to put a 3 generation picture, and a little book of 50 statements about me completed by the grandchildren.

After they went on their way, to end the day, my son and I took another short walk across town to deliver a card and some brownies to my only living aunt.  She was married to my mom's brother, and has been a very special part of my life through the years.

As the day ended, my thoughts went to the frame I now have in our living room which contains pictures of my family's "Three Wise Women".  Included are my great grandmother, my grandmother, and my mom.  All three gave me great wisdom in their lifetimes.  My thoughts then shifted to another three generations. . .my granddaughter, my daughter, and I.  Three are here on earth, and three are there in heaven.  The bond that will connect us both now and for eternity can be traced through our DNA, but more importantly through the redeeming blood of Jesus Christ, which will allow us to spend eternity together.