A Tribute to My Mom
“Honour they father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” Exodus 20:12
The second Sunday in May is the day set aside as a special day to honor our mothers. I suppose being a mother is the hardest job in the world, but the most rewarding. I would like to pay tribute to my mother who passed away 18 1/2 years ago at the age of 81. My mom’s life was not easy. She was a teenager during the Great Depression of the 1930’s, married at 19 and lost her baby during WWII while my dad was away in the army. She suffered from depression, having to undergo electric shock back in the 1950’s which destroyed some of her memory. She had a massive stroke at the age of 49, but recovered enough to be able to still do some of the things that she enjoyed with the help of a walker. My dad took care of her until she became bedridden, and he could no longer look after her due to his own health issues. She spent the last year of her life in a nursing home where she passed away on Christmas Day, 2001.
My mother was very talented although she only had a seventh grade education. She had to quit school in the eighth grade to pick cotton to help her family out. They were very poor, but so was just about everyone else. One of her talents was poetry. In looking through an old photo album yesterday, I ran across some of her poems that I had forgotten about. I would like to share two of them with you all.
“Life’s Journey”
Let me pause beneath thy shade, Oh tree, to rest on a summer day. Thy shade that spreads far and wide, ‘ore ye nations side by side, Not for long, let me abide. For beneath thy shadow my Savior died.
Just let me pause to behold Thy face, Then on my journey, I must haste, Not long to rest beneath thy tree, My Savior’s blood was shed for me.
My journey leads on to the tomb, I pause to rest beneath thy doom. Oh ye light! My shining guide, Where death’s raiments, Christ lay aside. Let me rest, but not for long, For I must hear the angels’ songs.
Let the end of my journey for ever be, In that mansion Christ is building for me. Oh death’s tomb! I cannot stay. For Christ arose for me one day. ANB October 20, 1954
“Today Is Mother’s Day”
Today is the day we set aside, to honor all our mothers. Some of us bought her presents, Some of us sent flowers.
I made mine a little gift, I wrote a little poem. I adored her name with it, I even crowned her mother.
I even wore an orchid, with the golden word of Mother. But when we dropped in to see, if her day was fitting; All her gifts were lying there, still tied with bows and ribbons.
All this work to honor her, we found we shouldn’t bother. Where was she? A note we found, She’d gone to visit her mother. ANB May 13, 1962
I hope every mom has a happy and blessed day. For those who are sad this day because of a loss, may the God of all comfort bless and keep you.