|
“All that I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”
- Abraham Lincoln
Twenty-eight years ago, tomorrow - May 8, 1993, at 11:59 p.m., my son - my first child, was born. Though his arrival was one minute prior to Mother’s Day, I realized that this gift would cause a shift in how we would celebrate Mother’s Day forever more. Immediately, I was overwhelmed with joy and revelation. Most notably, for the first time ever, I truly understood the existence of God and the certainty of miracles. Until the moment of his arrival, I had lived my life under a cloud of doubt and uncertainty.
The first person with whom I spoke after my son was born was my mother. It had been a particularly difficult delivery that left my wife in a very deep slumber. As I reached for the phone with one hand, I held the hand of the mother of my son with the other.
When my mother answered the call, I burst into tears and simply said, “thank you.”
Grateful beyond speech, she also burst into tears.
This Sunday, as has been a tradition for each Mother’s Day over the past twenty-eight years, I will hold the hand of the mother of my now five grown children and call my own mother to give thanks. Though, the years have taken a toll on my mother’s memory and she will no longer fully understand the reason for the call, the existence of God and the certainty of miracles that was confirmed to me on the day of my son’s birth, gives me the faith, hope and strength for my annual call to mom.
To all the mothers of this glorious Laurel Hall and Emmanuel Lutheran Family, I so admire your brilliance, and your importance. The beauty of our children emanates from your extraordinary love, strength, and maternal presence.
Happy Mother’s Day…
and thank you.
Jay
|
