Guest Column: The Lowe Down: Lessons from my Mama...

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Have you ever considered how some of the most amazing things in the world are commonplace? These things we take for granted like sunrises and sunsets, gravity, breathing, our heartbeat, being pain-free or in good health and our mothers. It’s a good thing that mothers aren’t in it for the fame, fortune or gratitude. If they were, we wouldn’t be here. Men have a crucial role in families and in society, but women literally make men.

There aren’t adequate words to thank or describe my mom. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her and she feels the same way, not just about me, but our entire family. She is home to all of us. She and I have an easy relationship. You know the kind where you fall into a natural rhythm when you’re together and you know what the other person is thinking or what they will think about something before you tell them about it. We have our own little sayings and cues; our own language. We possess the same sense of humor and laugh easily together. There is nothing better than getting tickled over something with her. It is truly one of life’s greatest pleasures to be the trigger of her laughter, especially the last year and three months since my dad’s passing. Bringing a smile to her face is my daily goal.

There’s a phone ritual she and I have where when I call her and she answers I always say, “There’s my mother” as if I’m surprised she is on the other end of the phone even though I called her. I don’t know how that got started other than it’s just a little silly thing we do. It’s little things like that that mean something to us. I respect, admire and trust her. She is the consummate confidante. She is a quiet, intelligent and thoughtful soul. And the most modest person I know about her strengths. She would never say a word that would hurt another. I know what she cares about and what she values in people. She sees through to the heart of others. She loved and cared for my dad for 62 years and has kept our family in line without raising her voice, just simply with the respect that we all have for her.

If anyone has ever had a child in her care, then they know her little body holds a heart that possesses a lot of love. She is a baby whisperer. She can soothe a crying baby rocking them to sleep and hold a child on her hip and cook a meal. When you’re in her presence you can literally feel the warmth of her heart. Even now her cool hand on my fevered forehead when I’m sick is medicine.

Every child in the world deserves to see their parents’ eyes light up when they enter a room and feel that they are loved. As a grown woman now in senior citizen discount territory, I am blessed to continue to have that experience every time I enter a room that she is in.

When it comes to celebrating our mothers, whether they be birth mothers or someone who has nurtured us, the most precious gift we can give them is to honor what they taught us. After the wrapping paper has been discarded, greeting cards have been read and phone calls placed, the most meaningful present they truly desire is to see the payoff for their years of sacrifice they have made for us. We truly honor our mothers by building lives that bring us joy and creating our own happy families. Being a parent is a lifetime assignment and the worry never ends. Mothers deserve validation from their children that her sacrifices were well worth it. The sweetest thing to a mother’s ears is to hear someone outside the family say something positive about one of her babies. Although most mothers would never take credit for the successes of their children, we all know where the recognition belongs; in the examples and lessons learned from our Mamas.

Pam Lowe is managing editor at the Clay County Courier in Corning. She can be reached at plowe@cherryroad.com. This column was originally published on May 7, 2020 and has been edited slightly from its original publication.