MOTHER-UnLOAD

   There are all sorts of mothers:  Helicopter moms, stage mothers, mother hens. Ask our children and they will tell you I am a mixture of them all. Part Captain Sulley, part Joan Rivers. This morning, not coincidentally at the start of Mother's Day weekend, their mother -  the in-house air traffic controller and executive producer of their school day, conducted an experiment.  I took myself out of the game. Sidelined and benched. The exercise was a combo deal: I could be temporarily released from my motherly morning duties in order to sleep in AND I could drive home my message that moms shouldn't be taken for granted. Let the natives mange the chaos themselves, I thought. 
   For some time I have been threatening to give our children under this roof the experience of a lifetime - a walk in mom's bedroom slippers. Underappreciation (and too many school science experiments) had driven me to the brink! It's a pretty pampered world our kids live in here. And i'm solely responsible for creating the morning monsters who regularly get up on the wrong side of the bed, and might as well prefer nails over wheaties for breakfast.
   In fairness, I gave them notice - plenty. But apparently it wasn't enough.  I expected to sleep through it all, waking up to an empty house and the sound of silence.  The calm after the storm. It didn't quite play out that way.  Their father awakened ME to ask if our girls were planning to go to school today. The nerve! The Today Show's Ann Curry had already tossed to Al Roker and weather when the kids discoverd they had overslept. Uniforms never touched an iron, and breakfast was a handful of throat losinges. Today at lunch i'm sure they were at the mercy of their friends with handouts.
    What I intended to be a lesson to the kids about their reliance on their mother, seemed to fall flat. There was no ah-ha moment for them, like "Mom, please, you have to help me straighten my hair." Just frustration and heavy sighs as they fled the house like a disaster drill in hopes of escaping another tardy slip. (They didn't!)
    In their wake, evidence of a harried morning with them flying solo.  I may or may not try this again, and it remains to be seen whether the experiment was lost on our children.  This much I do know:  come Monday morning, this mother will be back 'on duty', appreciative to have uniforms to iron, sandwiches to make, eggs to cook, and beautiful, healthy children to do it for!
    To all the mother's in the world, especially my mother-in-law, may your load be lightened, and your special day be filled with love, joy and laughter.  After all, it 'Manners' A lot!
     
       

ODE TO MOTHERS

The dictionary defines the word 'Mother' as a female parent, a mother-in-law, stepmother, or adoptive mother - a noun; or being a mother, like a mother bird - an adjective; acting maternally, as in a verb. No matter how you define the word, whether the mother in your life is young or old, has brown hair or silver, is here or deceased, all the 'mothers' in our life deserve every bouquet of love and warm wishes today and everyday. This blog would be remiss in not penning a love letter of thanks to mothers everywhere. The women who brought us into this world, wiped our tears, taught us to cook, and along the way made sure we minded our manners, not to mention the ones who came into our lives midstream, and those with whom we don't share a last name or gene pool, but who have 'mothered' us through life's storms. Of all the gifts the mothers of our world can give, that of social graces should be counted among the most valuable. My own mother's life-lessons, 35 years' worth, like a strand of cultured pearls, remain with me today. 21 years ago I was doubly-blessed to inherit a mother-in-law who continues to be the very embodiment of the art of loveliness, with her thoughtful, handwritten thank-you notes, well-set tables and her linen handkerchiefs. So to all 'mothers', heartfelt appreciation for teaching us the importance of being polite and gracious, for molding us and shaping us, and and reminding us that those little words like 'thank-you' and 'please' do go a long way. Our world is all the richer for having had you in it. Happy Mother's Day!