Mother Knows Best

from May 2020

Setbacks And Comebacks

20 // May 2020

by Rhonda Lane

Rhonda Lane is a native of Dalton, Georgia, and is an orphaned, old maid, and only child trying to find her way in the world and lose herself in Jesus Christ. About The Author W hen you’re 5, Mother tells you she knows best. When you’re 15, you think Mother knows nothing best. When you’re 50, you’re begging Mother to tell you what she thinks is best because you finally realize that she does know best. I think this is a pretty standard illustration of how most of our relationships with our parents progress over our lifetimes.

Like most mothers, my own mother had pearls of wisdom. They were little, everyday gifts to me without any special occasion, provocation, or even a special intent. Perhaps I should call them rubies instead of pearls, seeing as how Ruby was her name. Each and every one of the following gems has served me well these many years. 1. “Don’t wear jewelry with large, showy, fake stones.

Everyone knows you’re not rich, so they’ll also know the jewelry is fake.” 2. “Never tell anyone that they resemble another person.

For all you know, they might just hate that person.” 3. “Don’t respond to a bully’s taunts. It only adds fuel to their fire.” 4. “Education is something no one can take away from you.” 5. This one is not truly advice, but it would do one well to remember anyway. When I began first grade, she would recite this as we drove to school. “Going to school to make a scholar, wouldn’t miss a day for a dollar.” 6. This piece of advice was literally meant for visitors in our home, but it could also be applied figuratively to those we allow into our lives. “You can freely allow dear old friends into your home without fear. You can turn away complete strangers because you know not their motives and you owe them nothing. Be wary of those who are mere acquaintances because you know not their true motive, but you fear being rude and inhospitable by turning them away.” 7. “Save not your flowers for funerals; give them while their beauty can be enjoyed.”

That last piece of advice is one I heard many times over the years, and I took it to heart. She took this piece of advice so seriously that she opted for no funeral for herself. She felt that she had been betrayed by so many from the early part of her life that she did not wish for people to attend any service out of a sense of curiosity, bringing phony, flattering compliments such as, “Doesn’t she look good,” accompanied by crocodile tears.

I wish I could hear advice from her lips once again, but now it echoes only in my memories of her. I hope I bestowed her with adequate bouquets: not of petals but of acts of love and kindness while she lived on this side of life’s veil.

Give your mom a gift this Mother’s Day: whether from the pocketbook or the heart, it doesn’t matter to her. I wish I could give my mom a flower.

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