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Photo courtesy of Jody Smith
I've been a mom for 33 years. I've been a grandmother for 10. I have five children and four grandchildren.
This year is a bit different for me though because for the first time, one of my grandchildren will be around on Mother's Day. She and her parents don't live far away and we make the most of that.
When I was a kid being forced to make crafts in school, my appreciation for my mother may have been overshadowed a bit. But by my teens I was enjoying the challenge of doing something fun for my mom.
The first year I bought her pretty earrings, made her an omelet and finished things off with strawberries and ice cream.
My own first Mother's Day was stupid. I had read an article that encouraged mothers to throw off the tyranny of their families and tell them to go away so I could have a good time on my own.
If that sort of thing works for you, fantastic. But it bummed out my husband, and I had a lousy boring afternoon, missing my family. My 8-month-old son didn't mind it, he got to spend the afternoon with his father so he was fine.
We had four more children over the next eight years, and Mother's Day became a big deal, thanks to my husband, my mother and my willing crew of kids.
Gifts and treats came my way, and meals were prepared and cleaned up after without my lifting a finger.
While my mother and mother-in-law were still with us, we would all pack up and go to each of their houses with gifts. Sometimes we'd split up the visits throughout the weekend. Always it was a whirlwind of activity, hugs and gift-giving.
Gradually all my kids grew up. Some moved away across the country. Gatherings were smaller and quieter with the child-factor no longer in the picture. We'd have dinner with our kids and their partners, and there were often presents for little ol' me.
We'd have some conversation, take a few pictures. Nice, you know? Very different from the earlier decades of messy noisy chaos. This has been the new status quo for several years and I think everyone was fine with it.
Then, when a grandchild was born to her parents who only lived 45 minutes away from us, though, a certain gleeful anticipation began to grow.
I'd like to have my other three grandbabies nearby, but they're not and that's just the way it is. We get to see photos and little vidoes, exchange gifts. We love that.
The fact that our youngest grandchild is going to be popping over with her parents for Mother's Day is a bonus. She'll be four months old, and not particularly aware of what is going on, though she will smile and laugh at all of us.
For me, Mother's Day looks to the past and also to the future. Every Mother's Day I remember ever experiencing is wrapped up in this one, and so are all the possibilities of every one down the road.
I will post a photo of my brothers, my mom and myself from more than 40 years ago. I will fondly remember when we were small, trying to remember obscure details.
I'll remember the Mother's Day when I was taking care of the cooking and other household tasks when my mom had come home from the hospital.
I'll reflect back upon my first Mother's Day, with my first baby. I remember how it felt to have a young husband and a young child and the sheer novelty of it all.
With the next few passing years, and its accumulation of children, I began to feel like a Mother's Day veteran, knowing the ropes and enjoying them.
I remember how it felt when my little ones brought me gifts they made in church or that their granny had helped them to buy or create. I cherished the scribbles in crayon made just for me.
I still have, and use, the pretty wooden tray one of my little daughters gave me for Mother's Day, complete with breakfast in bed.
I appreciated the care and thought from my teenagers on Mother's Day. No reminders of the upcoming day necessary, the kids came bearing gifts and sometimes side dishes as well.
We had taught them pretty well, and I felt good about that. Plus I really liked the presents.
The Mother's Day adventure is already underway for all three of my daughters. They each have their own memories of having been the child honoring their mom, and now they are moms being appreciated for who they are and what they do.
Today I am very aware that I am looking to the future. My grandchildren are growing up, and I want to be as involved as possible in their lives.
We'll have special visits from those who live far away and lots of time for no particular reason with the grandchild who is within easy reach.
The generations become woven together over the years, the decades, into a powerful mosaic full of diversity, colour and love. To me, Mother's Day is a beautiful snapshot of that.
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