To My Mother, on Mother's Day

To My Mother

on Mother's Day

 “A mother is the truest friend we have,
when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us;
when adversity takes the place of prosperity;
when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine,
desert us when troubles thicken around us,
still will she cling to us,
and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels
to dissipate the clouds of darkness,
and cause peace to return to our hearts.”  

 ~ Washington Irving

Children, look in those eyes, listen to that dear voice,
notice the feeling of even a single touch
that is bestowed upon you by that gentle hand!
Make much of it while yet you have that
most precious of all good gifts, a loving mother.
Read the unfathomable love of those eyes;
the kind anxiety of that tone and look,
however slight your pain.
In after life you may have friends, fond, dear friends,
but never will you have again
the inexpressible love and gentleness
lavished upon you, which none but a mother bestows.
~ Thomas B. Macaulay

 ^^^^^^^^^
That is my mother.
Then. Now. And every day in between.
Happy Mother's Day, Mom.

I love you with all my heart.

"A Time I Had Courage"

I love William's second-grade teacher, Ms. Webb. She gets her students -- and especially my 8-year-old -- thinking about life ... in funny, silly and serious ways. One of her assignments recently was to have her students write about "A Time I Had Courage." 

William was only 27 months old the time he had to have the most courage ever, so he has little if any original memory of this time, but we have talked to him about it enough, he has seen photos of this time enough, and he has heard us tell his story to others enough, that he knows a lot about this particular time he had courage. 

I'm not going to tell his story this time, though. He has done that all on his own . With William's permission, here is his story about "A Time I Had Courage."