It has been seven years since I celebrated Mother's Day with my mom and though my brain knows to move along, my heart doesn't seem to get the message. Hardly a day passes that I don't think of her in some way. She wasn't especially extraordinary in a particular way, as all of us are, she lacked perfection. She was one of the older siblings in a family of ten children so at a very early age cooking, sewing and taking care of the younger ones was part of her life. She knew hard work early on with the help she provided and picking cotton. The countless stories I have heard, her life was a bit challenging. Canning, freezing, picking wild blackberries, tending to her flowers, hanging clothes on the line were things I always remember her doing. She crocheted afghans, made quilts, candlewicking and sewed. I never had a store bought dress until I was in high school. I have countless memories of time spent in the fabric store looking at patterns and material. Suits, blouses, skirts, long dresses for piano recitals. She even made one of her younger sisters wedding gown. The light blue dress with lace was one made for me to wear in a school pageant, she also made my senior prom dress. She made me some dresses when I was pregnant with my son and I have some dresses she made my daughter. The photo where she is holding BigBoy, she made that outfit. Okay, the point is she had a lot of talent. Later in years as she saw quilts that were being made and displayed, she felt like her work was really not that great. She didn't make them for show, though they were carefully planned and were made very well, they were functional. All of our family has some of her quilts.The countless times we had family, a whole lot of family, over for meals at the house. So many of my cousins that were close to mama, she was easy to talk to, shared her opinion and helped however she could. The many weddings she helped with food. The hours she spent with the grandchildren. They loved to go to my parents house to spend the night. Baking cookies, big country breakfasts. She was funny, blunt, kind and stubborn. Always having our favorite food cooked on the weekends that we came home from school. The times that she showed up at my door to help when BigBoy and VolleyGirl were babies, arriving early Christmas morning to watch the kids see their gifts. The many times that I met her at the craft shows or the shopping center to spend time together. Talks on the phone, every day, about current events, family, news from extended family. Discussing everyone after the family get together was over. I would always get a report after she went somewhere- who was there, how they were, what was said. I recall, weird as it sounds, after she died, thinking that she was somewhere new, experiencing and seeing things new.....and I wasn't going to hear her tell me about it. She always said that it didn't matter where we lived, as long as we were happy, she would be fine with it. One of my brothers lives in Louisiana and I know she missed not having him close but there never was any pressure on him, as long as he was happy. Words do not adequately describe what an important person in our family she was or what a massive void her passing has left in my life, and others. I was honored and pleased to care for her in the months before her death, it was just a droplet of what all she had done for me and for once I could be there when she needed help. Thanks mom, for all you were and for the priceless lessons and memories, you are missed as much as you were loved......
