Posted on 04/16/2002 8:13:12 PM PDT by TenthAmendmentChampion
This is for all the mothers who have sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's OK honey, Mommy's here." when they keep crying and won't stop.
This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who can't.
This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes.
This is for all the mothers who froze their buns off on metal bleachers at football or soccer games Friday night instead of watching from cars, so that when their kids asked, "Did you see me?" they could say, "Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and mean it.
This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet like a tired 2-year old who wants ice cream before dinner.
This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and explained all about making babies. And for all the mothers who wanted to but just couldn't.
For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year. And then read it again. "Just one more time."
This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead.
This is for all mothers whose heads turn automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home or away at college.
This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomachaches, assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there, only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up. Right away.
This is for needy mothers who were unselfish enough to give up their children for adoption, and who blessed the strangers who adopted those children and did all these wonderful things, all the while aching inside because they could not be there to do them themselves.
What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time?
Or is it heart? Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time?
The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby?
The need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?
For all the mothers of the victims of all these school shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting. For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely.
This is for mothers who put pinwheels and teddy bears on their children's graves. This is for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation.
And mature mothers learning to let go.
For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.
Single mothers and married mothers.
Mothers with money, mothers without.
This is for you all. So hang in there. Please pass along to all the Moms in your life.
"Home is what catches you when you fall - and we all fall."
You have a great Mom, and she has a great son.
I wanted to bump this, even though I only have two. :) They certainly are my greatest blessings in life. They are such good children; so easy to raise. After the first one was born, and I saw her for the first time, I thought to myself, "There is no way I could ever doubt there is a God, ever again". Something about seeing a beautiful life that grew in your tummy, just changes your heart and soul forever. You are never the same, after you become a mother.
I have eight, and a one-year old great-grandson; each special and unique.
I guess the part that made my cry the most, was about moms putting pinwheels and teddy bears on their childrens graves...for you see, one of my boys died, many years ago, when he was 15...when we go to visit his grave, I talk to him there, put flowers on his grave, sometimes put a little trinket or something he would like on his grave...I was blessed to have him for a little more than 15 yrs, before he died, due to leukemia...he was my dear boy in life, and is still my dear boy, tho now with the Lord...I am so glad that I went to every school function, to every baseball game he played in, that I spent tons of time with him, trying to be as good a mom as I could...when he died, I had no regrets, because I knew in my heart, I did all I could to make sure he was a beloved son...we never know how and when our children may leave us...and once gone, we cannot make up for lost time...
Every time I see someone be unjustly mean to a child, or see a child neglected, it breaks my heart, because I know all too well how fragile life is...
But on the brighter side, I still have my other son...When he went away to college, and he was no longer around the house, I cried and cried...it surely was not as severe as having a child die, but gosh, it was so difficult getting used to that empty nest...
Today my surviving son lives but 60 miles from us, so we see him as often as possible...in fact this weekend, we are traveling up from our home in Olympia, Washington to visit the son for a weekend, up in his home in Seattle Washington...
Weekends when my husband and I visit the son, or when he comes down and spends the weekend with us, are the greatest of all weekends...
Kids, they are Gods gift, and the greatest gift of all...
Afraid you might not see his thank you, and wanted to add my own for your warm wishes.
Free Republic members truly are wonderful!
Thanks to my Mom, who stayed with my brother at the hospital when he was sick 15 years ago.
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