Thanksgiving through the eyes of Mother's Day
The clock said 1:00am when the car finally stopped and sleep was in sight. I don't even know what it said when my head came to wearily land on my pillow. I do know that everyone else in my family was already breathing heavily and lost in dream world.
I woke to the sound of consistent coughing and the throb in my head said not enough hours had gone by. My poor little man was plagued by the persistence of the cough so I bring water, prop him, and check on him a couple times over the next couple hours until I finally get up saving my alarm the trouble.
I leave the room in its black stillness and realize the breakfast will end before any bodies are moving in our room. I precede to do what moms do, I care for my family. Thought is put into what each member of my crew would want to wake and eat and all is delivered to a room that still has not an ounce of movement to it. Breakfast in bed served to all six of the people I love.
I chuckle at the irony as it is the day we celebrate mothers. I see pictures through the morning of mothers receiving trays piled with thoughtful breakfasts served to them in bed. I rejoice with those moms, thankful their families are loving on them on this day of celebration just as my family does for me year after year. They are all far too good to me. Being the deliverer of breakfast on this day doesn't leave me discouraged as I leave the trays and slip out of the room again.
Why should I be discouraged? Today, even more than all other days, I think of this high calling God has given me - to be a mother.
It is a gift to be the last one up making sure everyone is settled and has what they need.
It is a gift to be awakened long before my alarm was prepared to do its work, so I could love on a sleepy little person.
It is a gift to be the first one up caring for the needs of my family before they are even awake to realize it.
Why don't I always see it this way?
I am thankful today that God, by His grace, granted this perspective. I thought of each face, both those here with me and the one I will see someday, and am overwhelmed with gratitude that God entrusted me with this task - being the mother of these beautiful people.
Tasks completed I head down and spend some time on the treadmill talking to God as the sweat drips. Motherhood is like that, blood, sweat, and tears poured out. I ask Him that none of that would be wasted. Most days I fall far short of what I should be as a mom. I am floundering along trying to figure this journey out. I ask Him to continue to extend His grace to me and to work in the hearts and lives of these kids He has entrusted to me. This is not a job for the faint at heart, I often say.
It is Mother's Day.
I ask God one more thing before embarking on the day's adventure. I ask Him to help me to meet them with smiles, with open arms, with love, with grace - not because it is Mother's Day, but because it is a DAY to be a mother like every day.
I woke to the sound of consistent coughing and the throb in my head said not enough hours had gone by. My poor little man was plagued by the persistence of the cough so I bring water, prop him, and check on him a couple times over the next couple hours until I finally get up saving my alarm the trouble.
I leave the room in its black stillness and realize the breakfast will end before any bodies are moving in our room. I precede to do what moms do, I care for my family. Thought is put into what each member of my crew would want to wake and eat and all is delivered to a room that still has not an ounce of movement to it. Breakfast in bed served to all six of the people I love.
I chuckle at the irony as it is the day we celebrate mothers. I see pictures through the morning of mothers receiving trays piled with thoughtful breakfasts served to them in bed. I rejoice with those moms, thankful their families are loving on them on this day of celebration just as my family does for me year after year. They are all far too good to me. Being the deliverer of breakfast on this day doesn't leave me discouraged as I leave the trays and slip out of the room again.
Why should I be discouraged? Today, even more than all other days, I think of this high calling God has given me - to be a mother.
It is a gift to be the last one up making sure everyone is settled and has what they need.
It is a gift to be awakened long before my alarm was prepared to do its work, so I could love on a sleepy little person.
It is a gift to be the first one up caring for the needs of my family before they are even awake to realize it.
Why don't I always see it this way?
I am thankful today that God, by His grace, granted this perspective. I thought of each face, both those here with me and the one I will see someday, and am overwhelmed with gratitude that God entrusted me with this task - being the mother of these beautiful people.
Tasks completed I head down and spend some time on the treadmill talking to God as the sweat drips. Motherhood is like that, blood, sweat, and tears poured out. I ask Him that none of that would be wasted. Most days I fall far short of what I should be as a mom. I am floundering along trying to figure this journey out. I ask Him to continue to extend His grace to me and to work in the hearts and lives of these kids He has entrusted to me. This is not a job for the faint at heart, I often say.
It is Mother's Day.
I ask God one more thing before embarking on the day's adventure. I ask Him to help me to meet them with smiles, with open arms, with love, with grace - not because it is Mother's Day, but because it is a DAY to be a mother like every day.
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