Word to your Mother

I have been an Oprah Winfrey Show watcher since I can remember and I have heard her say many, many times...."A full time Mother has the hardest job in the world". I must admit, before August 2002 I really thought Oprah might have missed the boat on that statement. I seriously couldn't reconcile in my mind how on earth staying at home raising children was difficult.....until I had one. Then.....I GOT IT. And you know what, even though I am not an avid Oprah watcher these days, I still think she's pretty smart...cuz she sure nailed that statement with a whole bunch of truth!!

Motherhood is taxing on all fronts....physically, mentally, spiritually.....daily rearing of little children can flat wear you out but as all Mothers know, the rewards are exponentially greater than any amount of effort given and usually our little ones manage to come through in the clutches and pull out some of their best and sweetest work when we have just about reached our breaking point. They must come equipped with some kind of "Mama's gonna blow radar".

And so yes, I happen to believe that Mother's Day is well earned by all of us Mothers. So well earned, I even think we could make this a bi-annual holiday....let me know if you're interested in starting a crusade for this.

So my Mother's Day weekend was just what I hoped it would be....filled with special time with my family and our friends. It was great to kick it off with Friday morning Bible Study and enjoy some time in God's word with some of the greatest women I know. I have developed some exciting and fulfilling new friendships and that's just one of the blessings of this most recent Bible Study. It's so awesome to have friendships firmly rooted in faith....what a gift! This most recent Study has been excellent....the daily lessons fall right into context with things I am wrestling with which, of course, is no accident. More about the study another time but suffice it to say I am learning over and over again that God's timing is always perfect.

Saturday we hit the beach with some of the Bethanys. We met at Isle of Palms and spent the entire day enjoying the sun, sand and surf. There were 13 children running around so there was NO SHORTAGE of playmates - it was great! The Mommy's managed to carve out some time to talk and the Daddy's bonded nicely over some fierce sand football and hole digging with the kids. It couldn't have been a better day....so great in fact that we continued the fun over dinner at Dog and Duck. Just one of those lazy days that lingered. PERFECT.....well, it would have been perfect had we not been missing our Monahans and Rowlands. Missed you guys...can't wait to do it again soon!!

Sunday....a full day for sure. For the 2nd year in a row, our church hosted the Children of the World Choir. The choir is made up of precious, PRECIOUS children from Uganda, Guatemala and Nepal. From the first drum beat, I fought back tears watching these little ones smile and sing joyfully -- their spirits were so bright which seems almost impossible to me in the face of their realities back in their home countries. The loss experienced at such young ages....no parents for many, being raised by siblings not much older than themselves....all due to the AIDS crisis in these countries.

Lilly and Winston were sitting just in front of us with the Brabham kids so it was great to enjoy the choir AND have a bird's eye view of my own children experiencing the choir too. At some point during a song, I saw Kathy scoop Lilly up into her lap so she could see better; Kathy leaned into Lilly, whispered something to her and kissed her head. Soon after, Lilly looked over to another friend of mine (and Mom) who was sitting next to her; Lilly simply looked up and smiled...Catherine reached down and starting stroking Lilly's hair...such sweet expressions. In those moments, my heart felt so full....knowing that my children not only have my love, but they are gifted with the love of so many special Mothers that are placed in their lives. I get the joy of having other Mothers to rely on for all kinds of support and our children reap those benefits too. We are so very blessed to have an extended family at Bethany, particularly since our immediate families are far away.

After church we had brunch at Farringdon with the Yoders and Boomershines....great fun. In all the excitement, I never managed an actual PICTURE of the Mother's.....only the children...go figure!! Regardless, it was a great morning with lots of laughter and plenty of good food.

I worked in a little siesta that afternoon during the stormy weather we were having and in an impromptu moment, we ended up back at the Yoder's for dinner. Brian "worked it out" (and yes, I just channeled Randy Jackson for that comment...DAWG!) with some smoking hot brisket on his smoker....YUM. The weather was perfect for a little dinner on their back porch. A great ending to a really great day......and weekend. Thank you Yoder family - for all that you do for us.

So a shout out, belated as it may be, to all Mothers....I really think every day is a good day to pay tribute to the job so many of us are fortunate enough to have. In fact, there are 2 Mothers about 6 hours away who did a mighty fine job indeed! Thanks Mom Jones and Mom Grant - we surely do love you!