Yesterday we celebrated mothers. There were tributes, cards, flowers, dinners, you name it there it was. I know how big many mothers smiled as I saw with my own mother. I was with my mother just 3 weeks ago flying in from New Mexico to her home in Virginia, I felt I needed to be with her on this day. I have always been a firm believer that mother’s day is every day. I balked and groaned about the commercialization of the day and raised my fist to those who subliminally forced us to march in mass buying cards and flowers. I realized that is me and my belief. For some, this is the one day they take a moment to think of mom. Whether with relationships fragmented or non existent, this day brings a memory or thought.

I have been blessed by the mother gods. Over the years My mother and I have developed a relationship based on love and respect. Of course it has not been easy as throughout my young years there were moments when I could have put a knapsack on my back and run off to places unknown. Growing into a teenager, our habits differed. My mother disliked clutter and had the habit of emptying my dresser drawers onto my bed knowing that I would need to reorganize. “When you have a house of your own, you can keep whatever you want in the drawers but in this house I do not want things living in there.” She had a point,I felt violated but it was her house and she was going to know everything that went on there. This is a woman who knew my movements. She kept her finger on the pulse of where I was and who I was with often demanding to call the parents of my friends whose parties I wanted to attend. At the time, I could not imagine having to check with the parents, I was 16 years old and actually thought I was grown. I did not go to that party and learned later that my friends parents were not there and the police had been called. Mom knew better than I. I am glad that my mom cared and I am glad she was strict. She asks me now if I think she was too strict. She often tells me that parents do what they think is right and maybe she would have done some things differently. Hind sight is 20/20. I tell her she raised me with love and I thrived. I think I came out pretty good.