We just celebrated Mother's Day and, in a few weeks, we shall be celebrating Father's Day.
How have your parents shaped your life? Parents shape our lives in many ways: they help us become the adults we are today. No parent is perfect, but I have found that the overwhelming majority of parents do their best to bring up moral, upright and productive children.
In today's world, one doesn't have to give birth to a child to be a loving mother. We have various types of mothers: birth mothers, adoptive mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, spiritual mothers, those we adopt as our mother, mothers in heaven, pet mothers and so on.
How has your mother shaped your life?
Did she encourage you to follow your dreams and help you achieve them?
Did she help you with your school projects?
Were you perhaps adopted by a wonderful family?
Perhaps your mother is in heaven and you have adopted a lady from your neighborhood or church to be your "mother?"
Grandmothers are now rearing their grandchildren; one's mother doesn't necessarily look like someone else's mother.
Did your mother, or grandmother, teach you to garden, bake, cook, sew, scrapbook, iron and other skills?
The poem by William Ross Wallace written in 1865 reflects upon the importance of our mothers. Here is the first stanza:
"Blessings on the hand of women!
Angels guard its strength and grace,
In the palace, cottage, hovel,
Oh, no matter where the place;
Would that never storms assailed it,
Rainbows ever gently curled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world."
In the Ten Commandments, the Lord commands us to "Honor thy father and thy mother," so it is obvious that God gives great importance to our parents.
Perhaps you are one who has the pleasure of having your mother living here in Crestview and get to spend time with her; treasure this time.
How did you make Mother's Day special?
Did you take her to her favorite restaurant?
Did you make her favorite meal at home?
Did you go to church with her?
Did you give her a special card, flowers or a plant?
Most importantly, did you tell your Mother that you love her, as we never know what tomorrow may bring.
Janice Lynn Crose, a former accountant, lives in Crestview with her husband, Jim; her two rescue collies, Shane and Jasmine; and two cats, Kathryn and Prince Valiant.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Celebrating our mothers