Motherhood Challenge: Dear Mom

-Day 4-

THE CHALLENGE:

Express thanks to your mother. Give her a

call or write a letter, expressing gratitude for

her love and influence. If she isn’t living,

write her a letter in your journal. And if it’s

not your own mother, maybe it’s another

woman who mothered you.

“ALL THAT I AM OR HOPE TO BE,

I OWE TO MY MOTHER.”

-ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Dear Mom,

In the words of the primary song that I love,

"Mother, I love you,

Mother, I do

Father in Heaven

Has sent me to you

When I am near you

I love to hear you

Singing so softly

That you love me too

Mother, I love you

I love you

I do."

I am so grateful that you are my mother. You have taught me so many things.

Like how to make the perfect chocolate cake, I don't know how many times you let me help you with making that cake before you turned the job over to me. And you always, always praised how it came out. Which made me want to whip up a cake pretty much every Sunday after church.

You taught me how to bake from scratch. I remember thinking it was weird how when I stayed over at my friends house, their pancakes (or their cakes) came from a mix in a box...and they never tasted as good as yours.

I know how to clean the bathroom within an inch of it's life thanks to you. I'm not sure why it seems like I always had the bathroom to clean. I do know that I couldn't make it out the front door on the weekends if that bathroom wasn't scrubbed down and sparkly.

You instilled in me a love of singing and music. One of my favorite memories of growing up is of you on Sunday afternoons, standing at the sink peeling potatoes for dinner and hearing you singing hymns. I didn't appreciate it as a child but as an adult and as a mother, I certainly do. I will forever be able to hear you singing "There is sunshine in my soul today", that seemed to be one of your favorite songs. Because you sang those hymns and you knew them by heart I wanted to do that as well and so I did. Because of you I can now sing most of the hymns without looking at the words. And I have grown to love and appreciate music. Thank you for that.

Through your actions you taught me to always speak kind words about others and that gossip, in any form, is unacceptable. You always seem to be able to see the good in people and you wanted me to see it and look for it as well...and so now I do.

My love of photography I can trace directly back to you and your many, many cameras. That and the love of all things beautiful. You love nature, the mountains, birds, the flowers... You love them all and you taught me to love and appreciate them as well.

You have taught me these things and much, much more...

But most importantly you taught me about unconditional love. You love people no matter who they are or what they do. You love them even when they treat you with disrespect. You love people that you haven't even met that you don't even know. And people feel this. They can feel your spirit and the love that you have without even talking to you. This love, this love that you have and that you are, radiates from within you and spills out to all those around you. Thank you for that.

Thank you for being the best mom I could ever hope to have.

Thank you for being my mom.

I love you.