This Sunday is Mother’s Day, and I’d like to honor the moms we all know by talking about some of what makes them, each and every one, special.
As a husband and father, the things I remember about our children are entirely different than those things my wife, the mother of our children, remembers.
It’s hard to really remember when our oldest now 15 was three years old. And I have no idea what we did for his 3rd birthday party. My wife, on the other hand, can remember the theme of the event, what our son did that day, what the weather was like, which of his friends were there and if anything went wrong with the party plans.
In fact, she remembers that it rained before we got to the putt-putt golf course, and I was worried that we wouldn’t be able to play. She recalls that the bakery misspelled Nicholas’s name. She remembers that he loved the cookie cake but was disappointed he didn’t get a hole in one.
I have no recollection of any of that. After looking at the pictures I remember some of those details but certainly not the weather and not even the misspelling of his name on the cookie cake.
The other day, I found an infant photo of one of our boys. I asked my wife if that was a picture of our older or our younger son. She glanced at the photo and immediately said that it was a picture of our daughter. I looked a little closer and asked her if she was sure.
She was sure. And she was right. Of course.
But that’s what mamas do. They take care of the details … and then remember them for the rest of us. They “sweat the small stuff.” They work hard to instill good qualities in their children, and then they work just as hard to create good, quality time with them. They take care of the hundreds of little things that add up to a positive experience for their kids, and they do it over and over again.
They do this because they love their children fiercely and unconditionally. This applies to all kinds of moms—birth mothers, those who adopt, the mothers we might gain through marriage or those we simply know.
Little wonder then, that a mama is so special in the eyes of a child … that nothing can take the place of a loving mother. Nothing. So this weekend, let’s celebrate these amazing women who make life meaningful and happy by taking care of all kinds of things—big and small.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there! We honor you, and we appreciate all that you do.