On Mothers Day

Lots of ways to say Mom

Today is Mothers Day, wherein we have the opportunity to celebrate, and rightly so, the mothers in our lives. We literally would not exist were it not for mothers. Not a single one of us. I would argue though that giving birth does not necessarily a mother make.

My mother did not give birth to me yet I am her first-born son. I was placed in her arms when I was but two days old. Since that day, I have been the recipient of her love, guidance, and support. I could not have asked for a better Mom. I also know that I was lucky to have been given the gift of this amazing mom through the love of the woman who gave birth to me. Hers was a sacrifice for which I am eternally grateful.

It is not my wont to get all misty-eyed about days like this that have been hijacked from their original intent in the name of profit. I learned today that the American woman who founded Mothers Day to honor her mother was so incensed by the way that several companies snatched the day and turned it into a moneyfest (and continue to do so to this day) was arrested protesting the very day she had created. Brava, I say, brava!

So rather than share some awful, Emily Dickens, Bronte Sisters-esque sentiment found inside one of those Mothers Day cards sold by the aforementioned companies, I'll share the sentiments of Irish novelist James Joyce:

Whatever else is unsure in this stinking dunghill of a world

a mother's love is not.

Nailed it! Leave it to an Irish novelist who knew from misery to put a mother's love in its clearest of perspective. A mother's love is the surest bet you can find. It is of great comfort. It is something you will miss after she's gone. By the way, if you are unfamiliar with the challenges of an Irish childhood, read Joyce. For a more modern take, read Angela's Ashes. Wow! What that mother endured. Talk about perspective.

I am so grateful and thankful that the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML is the mother that she is. Our three children are the reflection of all that she did, and continues to do, for them. How lucky they are! And what a joy, yes, a joy, it is to see Our Lady of Awesome experiencing her first Mothers Day today. The cycle of motherhood and the blessings it brings continues here in the Den.

This video probably does a better job of capturing motherhood than Joyce's quote:

Thank you, Mom, for everything.

Thank you to my mother-in-law for the gift of your daughter.

Thank you to my wife., the mother of our amazing children.

Thank you to my daughter, the mother of my first grandchild.

Thank  you mothers everywhere.