For many people, Mother’s Day is a day for buffet lunches or brunches, flowers to mom, heartwarming cards, breakfast in bed served by your kids, and all sorts of wonderful things.
But this is not true for everyone. For some people, Mother’s Day may be a reminder of the mom they have lost. For others, it may be a reminder of a child who is not there to celebrate. For still others, it is a reminder that the journey to becoming a mom cannot be taken for granted. It stands there, a day of springtime celebration, and for some people, it is a thorn without the rose.
In the past, when I’ve contemplated this side of Mother’s Day, it has made me sad, but I realize that this is not really the appropriate reaction. Instead, holidays like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and the like are reminders that we take so much for granted. We can’t see the riches we have before us until those riches are only to be mourned. We can’t see the people we love until we miss them one Valentine’s Day. We don’t treasure our moms and dads, or the fact that we are moms and dads. We just assume it’s all the natural order of things.
But life owes us nothing.
So on this Mother’s Day, I will look at everything in my life that I take for granted. What if there was an Eyesight Day? A Hearing Day? A Walking Day? A Living Day?
What treasures in your life are you overlooking? Think about those this weekend, whether it is a happy weekend for you or a weekend tinged with sadness. Open your heart to appreciation for the things that so easily slip our minds. Give thanks to whatever power you believe in for those people who you just assume will always be around to brunch with.
Nothing is a given in life. Therefore, everything you are given is precious.
Enjoy the day tomorrow. Happy [early] Mother’s Day!
Image by Wong Mei Teng. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/MeiTeng