Mother

I remember my mom every day. I mean that. She died January 1989 at age 57 as a result of the debilitating effects of Addison's Disease.She technically died from a heart attack,; her heart was so weakened from that awful and rare disease. The song " The Wind Beneath My Wings" became my tribute music to her, and I smile whenever I hear that sung. She was certainly my hero. Although uneducated, she was extremely wise, and although she faced many travails in her life, she was optimistic, loving, spiritual and made me laugh. She could do anything when she put her mind to it. She was a wonderful cook- gosh I miss her cooking frequently. She was artistic; she painted, made ceramics, sewed beautiful clothes( she made my prom dress ), decorated cakes, all the while being a very involved parent with all four of her children. She and Dad married in 1949, and my oldest brother was born that year. Mom was in 11th grade at the time, and she didn't finish high school. When I reflect on that fact, I'm always amazed, because she was one of the smartest women I've known, but she never got that piece of paper with the word Diploma on it.My mom was a very good money manager and "housewife." She could stretch a dollar in very creative ways, and even though my parents lived in a very modest home, she took care to make my childhood home beautiful,comfortable, inviting, and always extremely clean.I lived in a three bedroom, one bath, one car garage home and I loved it there. Six people- one bathroom- and it was fine. My parents never lived beyond their means and single income, but they were able to budget a family trip every year - and those were very memorable times- , piano and stringed instrument lessons for all us children, and camp opportunities for us like Interlochen Music Camp. My mother exposed me to opera, ballet, symphonies, musicals, and instilled in me a love of reading. When I was seven, she gave me all her Nancy Drew books, and I was hooked. Some of my best childhood memories were her holiday family dinners with all the relatives in that small home. It was loud, messy, crowded ,joyful and always lots of delicious food. Mom's food was pure comfort food! And birthdays were special. She made the birthday person whatever was requested. We went to the Methodist church in Pontiac, and rarely missed a Wednesday or Sunday. Mom was in a church group called the Martha's Circle, and the members came to our home once in a while, and I heard my mom talk about the joy of her Faith and her love of God. That was so influential for me. She was a very involved member of PTA - president at the elementary school , the junior high school and then at the high school. She became a state officer , in fact.Mom did all this while being very ill a lot, but without complaining about her health. My mom was run over by a car when she was five years old. She was in the hospital for months and she had a small metal plate in her head for the rest of her life , so consequently,she used to get brutal headaches. I have a photo of her when she was very young. She resembled Shirley Temple. I think my mother was beautiful,especially the last few years of her life, and I think she was a courageous woman and an awesome role model. I was mad or upset with my mom maybe a half dozen times in my life, and usually she ended up being right, I admit. Was she perfect? Of course not, but she was excellent. My mother's birthday is May 15, which always is around Mother 's Day. So Mother's Day week is always special. My mother died before my children were born. That thought always saddens me because she was a wonderful grandma to my nieces and nephews, and she would have been a terrific grandmother with Adam and Gina as well.She was as good a wife, mother, grandma and woman as she could be, She was a quality human being. I was blessed to call her "mother."