Sunday Morning Reflections - Mother's Day Memories

Trying to be upbeat on Mother's Day when your mother's passed away is like being single and looking forward to Valentine's Day. You just don't know exactly how you want to feel, but I know I have a choice.  I used this quote in a post a few month's ago, but it's still so appropriate:

"The older I get, the more I see there are these crevices in life where things fall in and you just can't reach them to pull them back out. So you can sit next to them and weep or you can get up and move forward. You have to stop worrying about who's not here and start worrying about who is.”  Alex Witchel 

So here's what's great about this Mother's Day for me...

I know Mom is no longer battling it out with Alzheimer's. I know she's at peace and hanging out with other friends I've lost over the years, Don Blair, Monte Zucker, Dean Collins and Bengt Forssbaeck, just to name a few. I also have this vision of Dean meeting her when she left us last June and saying, "Oh, so you're Skip's Mom," and then proceeding to tell her one crazy story after another about our friendship. I can hear her laughing and doing more than one "OMG".

That's pretty much how I'm going to spend the day - just thinking about Mom as I was growing up and the funny things that happened over the years. Most of all, I cherish the last couple years when I was finally living in the same zipcode with her and Dad; time we had together; Mom's love for me and Sheila: going out for ice cream and those moments when Alzheimer's would take a break and Mom would come back to us.

I'm also going to be thinking about all of you who are mothers. Since most of you are artists too, the respect I have for you and your ability to balance being a mom, wife, friend and business owner runs deep. You're managing the ultimate balancing act and still able to stay focused on life and your subjects.

And for those of you, who like me have lost your mother, I'm a huge fan of Marianne Williamson who talks a lot about death. I've never been particularly spiritual, but that's where Sheila comes in.  I know the only thing that's changed is that Mom's left her physical being, but her spirit is alive and well and all around us. Hang on to only the good memories you have of your mother and cherish every smile they give you.

As for us, we might not be able to cook Mom a Mother's Day feast like we did last year, but she's watching over us and I can still wish her Happy Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom - We miss you!

Photo Credit: Cantrell Portrait Design