Remembering Mom

May 30th – traditional Memorial Day – was my mother’s birthday.  Most of her life, she shared her birthday with family, celebrating and making visits to cemeteries to remember those who had passed on from this life.

Today, I remember her and miss her.  She would have been 89 years old. 

I loved my mom!  What a great example she was of kindness, selfless love, and service.  She had a heart of gold, and spent her life trying to help others be happy.  I remember my dad describing her as “near perfect.”

Mother was a strong woman, and very capable.  She did suffer at times with low self-esteem, and often worried that she wasn’t good enough.  She worked hard, raised 6 children, and volunteered at church, not to mention that she was often checking in with her mother and siblings to make sure they were all doing well.

Since I was younger than her other children by almost 5 years, I spent a lot of one-on-one time with Mom.  Granted, we were often attending meetings, visiting relatives, working side by side.  I was her tag-along, and usually spent time observing or playing quietly so as not to disturb other important matters.  I learned a lot from Mom, especially by her example.  Those memories are very special to me now. 

Mom taught her children to recognize right from wrong and to do what is right.  She taught us to be observant, helpful, polite, good, and most importantly to be kind.  She would often sing songs to help teach her lessons: “Let’s Be Kind to One Another,” “Let us Oft Speak Kind Words to Each Other,” and “Kindness Begins with Me.”  Our mother was slow to offend, quick to love and forgive.  Oh, how the world could learn from her simple lessons!

Come on over to my place!

Some writers write blogs.  I am no writer.  Some people write blogs about specific areas of expertise.  I am no expert.  Some blogs are creative and fun, like cooking blogs.  (They make me hungry.)  I don’t think of myself as either creative or fun.  I am a “jack of all trades, master of none.”  I do think a lot, enjoy helping people, and can be very opinionated at times.  We’ll see where this goes…

I’ve decided to name my blog, “Linda’s Place,” inspired by my dad and uncle.  Now there is a story!

When I was a young child, I told my dad I wanted to have a lemonade stand and make some money like the other neighborhood children.  My dad, being the creative man that he was, decided to make me a lemonade stand.  Not a small cardboard stand.  Not a small table with a poster board sign.  My dad made me a large wooden stand from plywood, complete with a fold-down counter and fold-out sides.  A sign hung down in the middle which read “Linda’s Place.”  (I wish I had a picture.)  When Dad showed it to me, my uncle and his family came to visit.  As my uncle got out of his car and walked over to my stand, he asked, “Is this Linda’s Place?”  I smiled timidly saying “yes.”  Then he asked, “Are you Linda from Linda’s Place?”  To this day when I see my uncle, he always asks, “Are you Linda from Linda’s Place?”

So, this is my place.  A place to write my thoughts and feelings, or spill my “mindless chatter.”  A place to share insights from life’s lessons.  A place to express my deeply held convictions and opinions.  A place to clarify my goals and hold me accountable.  A place to improve my perspective.  A place to make lemonade out of lemons.

You are welcome to join me in my journey.  Together, we can inspire each other, open our hearts and minds, expand our vision, and increase our understanding.  This, in turn, will heal our deep wounds, help us recover from hardship, and hopefully, strengthen our relationships.

I have always wanted a place where my family can come for comfort, where visitors feel welcome and empowered, where all who enter feel love and peace.  A place that encourages growth and positive change.  That is my goal.  This is my place…Linda’s Place.

Come on over to my place!