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A Mother's Day Angel Mothers Day came so quickly this year! For those of us who have lost our Mothers, it is a special day to reflect and recollect individual memories. I lost my Mom seven years ago. I have especially vivid memories of Mothers Day, 1994. Something happened that day that touched my life forever. Although this may begin as a sad story, I have very beautiful memories of this particular Mothers Day. We had planned a trip with my Mom and Dad, a year in advance, and made reservations at a beautiful inn along the coast of Mendocino County. We arrived at my parents house late Friday evening after a tiring flight. We were going to leave Saturday morning. Mom wasn’t feeling very well and wasn’t sure she was up to taking the trip. As it turned out, Saturday morning she was in a lot of pain and we admitted her to the hospital. She had been diagnosed with a serious illness just a couple of weeks earlier. Mom, always concerned about protecting others, didn’t share the news with us. We found out what was going on when it became apparent she would need to go into the hospital. Concerned about ruining our weekend plans, she tried to convince my husband and I to take the trip alone. We both wanted to be with Mom. I think she knew that, even before she tried to talk us into taking the trip. We stayed by her side in the hospital on Saturday and returned early on Mothers Day morning. I had made a special gift for her and still remember how happy she was when she opened it. Sunday was a long day. The seriousness of my Mom’s illness was really depressing. At some point, my husband and I went outside to get some fresh air while the nurse was performing a procedure. I was feeling sorry for myself and throwing one of my little ‘pity parties.’ I’m even embarrassed to admit how selfish I was feeling at the time. I felt like Mother’s Day probably couldn’t get any worse than this. My Mom was seriously ill and we were spending the whole day at the hospital. Nothing special to even look forward to later that day. It was then that this little old lady appeared. She asked if we knew where she could catch the bus. We pointed to the corner and tried to explain how she could get there. Unaware that the buses didn’t stop there on Sunday, I told her they ran every half hour. She began to walk toward the bus stop and something prompted me to ask her where she was going. She lived about five miles away. I suggested we give her a ride home. On the way to her house, she told us why she had been visiting the hospital. Her husband was ill with diabetes. She said they were going to have to amputate his leg the next day, and he didn’t know about it yet. She started to cry softly. At that moment, my heart wanted to break for this woman and what she must be going through. I felt this overwhelming feeling of love for her and wanted to do something to comfort her. I felt completely helpless. She was extremely thankful we had given her a ride and wanted to do something to show her appreciation. I said we were happy to help, and explained that it wasn’t an imposition. I told her she looked especially pretty in her white angora sweater. She started to take the sweater off and give it to me. She was insisting that I take it because she was so grateful we gave her a ride. I said "It looks so beautiful on you, I wouldn’t want to take it from you." This special person had no idea what she did for me that day. I realized what a fool I had been spending time feeling sorry for myself. Her situation immediately put life into a very different perspective for me. I recognized a tremendous feeling of gratitude for so many blessings in my life. And, I experienced a powerful feeling of love for this woman I had never met before. I learned, in those few moments, that loving others happens through acts of kindness and not through passive emotions. We left her and returned to the hospital. We both felt overpowered with what we had just experienced and drove in total silence. I was very thankful to have that day with my Mom. It was to be our last Mother’s Day together. I didn’t realize at the time that we were creating special memories. I reminisce about that day with very warm and extraordinary feelings. Interesting, I have no idea how that frail woman came to the hospital that morning. I only know that she came into my life for a brief time and taught me some very important lessons I needed to learn that day. * * * |