Mother's Day
Really quick before anything else - I have slowly been getting into documentaries. I watched one this week called 20 Feet from Stardom and I happened to love it a lot. It also won an Oscar and well it should have cause it was incredible. The singers are mind-blowingly good and have really interesting life stories. I think you should listen to some of the singers - Tata Vega, Judith Hill, Merry Clayton, Darlene Love, Lisa Fischer, Claudia Lennear, and The Waters (Not the same Waters family that I know. The Waters family of back-up singers that sang with the Jacksons a lot.) I just had to share that cause it has been on my mind.
So today is Mother's Day and I love having a reason to celebrate my mom. And not just my mom but the mom's in my life. But today I want to talk about my mom and my grandma (GG). How thankful I am for them and the lessons they taught me.
Sometimes I love seeing how lessons are passed on from one generation from the next. And I love to see how my grandma did that.
My grandma and my mom's dad divorced long before it became as common place as it is today. I think that must have taken a lot of guts and determination on my grandma's part to decide to raise three kids pretty much on her own. When I think of my grandma I think of her strength not just in making that hard decision but also in dealing with my Uncle's death a few years ago and trying to figure out what to do during his many years of drug use. I can't imagine trying to deal with that situation. Obviously she couldn't stop loving her own son but at the same time she could not support his behavior. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place. Despite that rough situation my grandma is one of the most loving and friendliest people I know. We joke that she makes a friend wherever she goes. Even if she is in Target for five minutes she will make a friend. I am beginning to see that quality develop in me because I want to be nice to people around me. Like her I want to try and make people's day brighter. I love that no matter what happens in life she desires to be able to smile and laugh which isn't always the easiest thing to do.
My mom is the same way. She has always been nice to everyone she meets. I know that it can be a habit of some people that go to church to look at people they don't know and think, "What do they believe?" "Can I convert them?" My mom has always taught me to not look at people as souls to win to add to your tally but to treat everyone the same. As people that are living this rough life together that should be loved because that is really what we all need. And that you love them no matter what. Everyone has differences which means everyone is going to have disagreements but that doesn't mean we can't love on everyone anyway. Instead embrace those differences and learn from them. And learning things from my non-Christian friends is one of my favorite things because I love getting a glimpse at how different people view the world. I also love that she has taught me that we will all make mistakes. We can't get around that. It's the human condition. We will never get everything right. But if we own up to our mistakes and turn from those things - you know not do them again - then we are learning. And when we sin, cause it's gonna happen, all we have to do is repent (which includes that turning from and not doing it again) we will be welcomed with open arms of love. Add to that I love that she has taught me that bad habits, and sins that grab us, can be hard to break but seeking counsel to break that temptation is a beautiful thing. And like my grandma she is strong and independent. She stands firm in what she believes and encourages me to do that same. I love too that she has told me that standing for what you believe isn't always easy because life isn't easy. I think that if she had tried to sugar coat every lesson like things would work out perfect I wouldn't be here today. I wouldn't fight for my life or I would be the grumpiest person in the world.
And I am glad I can try my best to pass down these lessons and more to the girls I counsel at camp.
I don't know if any of that made sense but I am so thankful that I am GG's granddaughter and Dina's daughter and thankful that they willingly share their wisdom with those around them.
I love you to the moon and back.
Happy Mother's day!
So today is Mother's Day and I love having a reason to celebrate my mom. And not just my mom but the mom's in my life. But today I want to talk about my mom and my grandma (GG). How thankful I am for them and the lessons they taught me.
Sometimes I love seeing how lessons are passed on from one generation from the next. And I love to see how my grandma did that.
My grandma and my mom's dad divorced long before it became as common place as it is today. I think that must have taken a lot of guts and determination on my grandma's part to decide to raise three kids pretty much on her own. When I think of my grandma I think of her strength not just in making that hard decision but also in dealing with my Uncle's death a few years ago and trying to figure out what to do during his many years of drug use. I can't imagine trying to deal with that situation. Obviously she couldn't stop loving her own son but at the same time she could not support his behavior. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place. Despite that rough situation my grandma is one of the most loving and friendliest people I know. We joke that she makes a friend wherever she goes. Even if she is in Target for five minutes she will make a friend. I am beginning to see that quality develop in me because I want to be nice to people around me. Like her I want to try and make people's day brighter. I love that no matter what happens in life she desires to be able to smile and laugh which isn't always the easiest thing to do.
My mom is the same way. She has always been nice to everyone she meets. I know that it can be a habit of some people that go to church to look at people they don't know and think, "What do they believe?" "Can I convert them?" My mom has always taught me to not look at people as souls to win to add to your tally but to treat everyone the same. As people that are living this rough life together that should be loved because that is really what we all need. And that you love them no matter what. Everyone has differences which means everyone is going to have disagreements but that doesn't mean we can't love on everyone anyway. Instead embrace those differences and learn from them. And learning things from my non-Christian friends is one of my favorite things because I love getting a glimpse at how different people view the world. I also love that she has taught me that we will all make mistakes. We can't get around that. It's the human condition. We will never get everything right. But if we own up to our mistakes and turn from those things - you know not do them again - then we are learning. And when we sin, cause it's gonna happen, all we have to do is repent (which includes that turning from and not doing it again) we will be welcomed with open arms of love. Add to that I love that she has taught me that bad habits, and sins that grab us, can be hard to break but seeking counsel to break that temptation is a beautiful thing. And like my grandma she is strong and independent. She stands firm in what she believes and encourages me to do that same. I love too that she has told me that standing for what you believe isn't always easy because life isn't easy. I think that if she had tried to sugar coat every lesson like things would work out perfect I wouldn't be here today. I wouldn't fight for my life or I would be the grumpiest person in the world.
And I am glad I can try my best to pass down these lessons and more to the girls I counsel at camp.
I don't know if any of that made sense but I am so thankful that I am GG's granddaughter and Dina's daughter and thankful that they willingly share their wisdom with those around them.
I love you to the moon and back.
Happy Mother's day!
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