Tag: Mother

The Christmas Bread.

I remember once when I was a little girl. It was Christmas, and my mother was busy baking bread in the kitchen. Desperate to keep me from underfoot, she broke off a piece of the dough, smiled and said, “Now go make something nice.”

I’d watched her bend and knead the mixture, adding dried berries and candied nuts with each quarter turn. Then into the oven to carry a nutmeg infused joy throughout the house.

I wanted my bread to be ‘perfect’, just like hers. Though, in those days at just barely 4-years-old I thought perfection meant MORE. So, I squirreled away spending the next half hour furiously patting and rolling – until I emerged with a lint-encrusted ball now the color of smoked ash (the fireplace bricks being the only logical choice for a flat rolling surface).

I watched her eyes intently as I handed the culinary ‘masterpiece’ back for baking. She never missed a beat, only smiling. “Now THIS will be delicious,” she said.

It didn’t improve with cooking, I assure you, my loves. The overworking caused the bread to fall, and the flecks of fireplace certainly didn’t help. Though, the process did prove to be an earlier lesson in temperance and balance.

You see…

‘More’, isn’t always ‘better’ – particularly, in matters of heart. And only the hand that lessens its grip can know the fullness of all things.

In peace…

Namaste ❤

On Being Mom.

I remember once when I was just a little girl, my father had purchased a piece of land deep within the woods, and far away from all the noise of the city.

As he chatted to the workers about the various planned changes, I took my first big long gaze into our new life together.

To any other observer, the property was a mess of construction—chaotic, and with no end in sight. But I never saw the piles of planks and nails—I only saw the hope in my parent’s eyes.

And through their eyes, I began to see this world.

The house was tucked far away, surrounded by a density of brush that drew me in with each new day. Much like the moon against the tide, my heart was similarly drawn; adventure was inescapable.

I would spend all day scrambling through these woods, flipping over every branch and rock—digging my hands knuckle deep into that cold, wet earth. By the time the sun began to set, my fingers were a patchwork of black and blue.

These were my woods, and this was my home–and I felt always safest here.

Nighttime was inevitably a chore for my dear mother, who patiently scrubbed away the details of my day—taking in the stories of a ‘fearless explorer’. She never seemed to mind my excitement, smiling softly and nodding in only that way a mother knows best.

And no matter the worries of her own very long day, she always seemed to listen intently as she combed the knots from my waist long hair.

You see, my Mother – she understood me. She understood my excitement at seeing this world as entirely new, and never once dared to discourage.

There is nothing greater in this world or this life, than a mother who’ll encourage you to run and to play…to scrape up those knees, and leave yet another gaping hole in your pants.

And the best mothers will never complain about the trail of muddy footprints leading in from the outside and across her newly washed floor. Or, that dirt embedded so deeply under your nails.

Why?

Because she knows a little scrubbing is a small price to pay for a ‘grand new adventure.’

A mother’s love is like nothing else in this world; knowing precisely how to reconstruct a heart shattered to dust.

Because, mothers are comprised of all the universe’s love. They are the foundation to our world, and a continual source of unconditional love.

These days, I’m all grown up and a mother myself—but I shall never forget the lessons my mother shared with me.

“Live each day, fully and completely.

Smile, in the sunshine and in the rain.

Love with all and everything you’ve got.

And, don’t worry so much about getting dirt stuck between your toes.”

The world is filled with magic for those who are willing to see. And to each, the ‘fearless explorer’ within – adventure awaits.

So go on, get out there and squeeze the ‘carpe diem’ out of this day.

In peace, my loves – and, Happy Mother’s Day…

Namaste ❤️

A Little Something My Mother Once Shared with Me.

[blockquote source=”Washington Irving”]”A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness and cause peace to return to our hearts.”[/blockquote]

I remember when I was just a little girl, my father had purchased this piece of land deep in the woods, and far away from all the noise of the city. As he chatted on to the workers about this change and that, I took my first big long gaze of our whole new world together.

To any other observer, the property was a mess of construction—chaotic, and with no end in sight. But I never saw the piles of planks, and nails, and trash—I only saw the hope in my parent’s eyes. And through their eyes, I began to see this world.

The house was tucked far away in the woods, surrounded by many acres upon acres of thickly wooded land that drew me in with each new day—much like the moon draws the tide when it begins to rise against the night sky.

A small creek ran directly through the property, inviting me with its bubbles and burbles to follow it through to this day’s newest adventure.

These were my woods and the woods were my home.

I would often spend all day scrambling about these woods, flipping over each and every rock along that creek bed—digging my hands knuckle deep into that cold earth until my fingers were nearly black and blue, and the sun began to set.

Nighttime was always a chore for my dear mother, who spent the evening scrubbing away the details of my day—taking in all of my stories, and doing her best to calm my heart for just a bit. She never seemed to mind my excitement, smiling softly and nodding in only that way a mother knows best how to do.

And no matter what the worries of her own very long day, she always seemed to listen intently as she combed the knots from my waist long hair, while I sipped at the warm cocoa she heated just for me.

My Mom, she understood me and my amazement at this most incredible world. She understood each time I rattled on about this, or about that, that it was because I was seeing things each day in a brand new way.

There is nothing greater in this world or this life, than a mother who’ll encourage you to run and to play…to scrape up those knees, leaving yet another gaping hole in your pants.

And the best mothers will never complain about the trail of muddy footprints leading in from the outside and across her newly washed floor. And that dirt embedded so deeply under your nails? She knows this dirt will be easily scrubbed away and that scrubbing is a small price to pay for a grand new adventure.

Mothers always seem to know just what to say, when your heart crashes suddenly into a million pieces onto life’s floor.

“A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.“

Because, mothers are just kind of built with that much love. They are the foundation to our world, and a constant source of unconditional love.

These days, I’m all grown up and a mother myself—but I shall never forget the lessons my mother shared with me.

“Live each day, fully and completely. Smile, in the sunshine and in the rain. Love with all and everything you’ve got.

The world is filled with a most brilliant magic and for only those who are willing to see.

And, to those who can see—adventure awaits. So go on, get out there and squeeze the ‘carpe diem’ out of this day.

And, don’t worry so much about getting dirt stuck between your toes.”

Namaste and Happy Mother’s Day – to every single mother out there…and all that dirt they’ve helped to scrub.