As Mother’s Day approaches, I tend to get reflective. This will be my third Mother’s Day without my mom to celebrate and share space with. Mothers play such a significant role in our lives. They are our rocks. They challenge and support us. Even when we feel they aren’t in our corner, we know that ultimately they have our back.
My mom was the best and the worst. Sometimes our relationship was challenging; after all, she was human and so am I. Sometimes being human is not that pretty. As the mom of three amazing young ladies, I think my girls could say the same about me. That’s hard to admit. She was very stubborn and so am I, and I’m pretty sure my girls are, too. God bless their future spouses!
I love to study people and it is interesting because as I reflect on what I want my legacy to be, I think about my mom. It’s funny how seemingly small events can make such a HUGE impact on a life. I vividly remember a hot summer day driving around town with my mom and middle brother. We had stopped at a traffic light and watched as a sweet little old lady made her way across a busy street, pushing a big wire basket-walker on wheels that was full of groceries. Despite the 100 degree heat, she was dressed to the nines in a long dark skirt and long sleeved blouse, with matching hat and white gloves. Her hair was neatly combed and carefully pinned into an up-do (yes, I noticed hair even then!). She moved so slowly, but deliberately. My mom pulled over to offer help. That’s when we met Miss Pinkly, who lived with her ill younger sister and their seven cats. She had been a public school teacher and never married, but considered her former students to be her “kids”.
As I watched my mother serve Miss Pinkly, that moment sparked my own desire to serve others. In that moment, I wanted to be just like my mom. Over the years, we continued to help out Miss Pinkly. She was a sweet and proud woman, and sometimes resisted the help. She would allow my mom to drive her to the grocery store and on occasion she would allow her to purchase some extra groceries for her. Miss Pinkly always made sure her cats had enough to eat, but I think there were times when she didn’t have enough to eat.
One mantra of my mother’s has always stuck with me: “Be kinder than you have to be – you never know what someone else is battling.” I find myself saying that often to my kids, even when it’s the hardest thing to do. I do not think my mom set out to have service as her legacy, she just walked this talk. And my mom is the reason and the inspiration behind the “Why” of MopTop’s support of charities/organizations that are special to us. April was Autism Awareness Month and thanks to your support we were able to donate funds to purchase a table and 6 chairs for the Brent Woodall Foundational for Exceptional Children, a local non-profit organization that provides behavioral therapy and support to children and families affected by autism. In the coming months, we will also sponsor military veterans, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Gifts of Hope for Guatemala, the North Texas Cat Rescue, and others. If any of these causes resonate with you, please share and help us support them. My mother “obeyed without delay” when it came to serving others. My desire is to follow her example and do the same throughout my life.
I LOVE you and miss you, Mom, aka Nana Wolf (that’s a story for another time!). Let me encourage you to go hug on your mom, grandma, and kids this Mother’s Day, and just enjoy sharing space with them.
To share your own stories about your Mom or a motherly figure who influenced your life, please send them on!
