A Mother's Love

I have an AMAZING mother, but she doesn't know she is amazing.  She has no idea how many she has influenced and continues to influence every day with her example.  I don't think any of us realize the impact that we have, but we will be amazed someday when we realize how the desires of our hearts have rippled through the world.  My mom had the courage of breaking the cycle of abuse and ignorance that had been passed on through generations.  There are not many people who could do what she has done. All of the environmental factors were against her, yet her heart was good and her perseverance strong.  Out of rocky, infertile soil she rose as a beacon of light.

This is an old picture, there are 5 1/2 more grandchildren since then :-)

I think about my circle of influence, and their circle of influence and how each life impacts so much more than is perceived.   I know she will someday be amazed at how much good she has brought into this world because of her courage.  These are my Mother's Day thoughts of her (I am not a poet, but these are thoughts from the heart, which makes it worth posting :-) ):

Dear Mom,
I know you think you're ordinary
As you look back on your mistakes.
And you desire to have known better
And to have had all that it takes.

You don't yet see who you are truly.
You miss the Majesty beneath
Insecurities, unreal perceptions.
They hide from you your queenly wreath.

If you could pierce that false perseption,
Glimpse the nobility I see,
I know you'd walk with head held higher,
No fear to let your light shine free.

Your love has been an earthly refuge.
Your love has filled my life with warmth.
I have always felt worthwhile
Amidst the world's put-downs and scorn.

Though you see not your heavenly influence,
Your love has made me who I am,
And all my children and their children
Will sing vast praises to your name.

Your selfless love has made an impact,
Though to you seems rather small,
It has elevated spirits
Which, in turn, have lifted more.

Your love will ripple through the ages
And on, through all eternity.
Your widow's mite (to you so meager)
Has transformed lives infinitely.

For now, blind to your queenly splendor,
You keep on giving selflessly,
You do not see the hero I see,
You give in great humility.

But someday will the veil be lifted,
And you will see the good you've done,
And all of us whose lives you've altered,
Will humbly reverence your throne.

Thank-you to all mothers everywhere.  You do not yet see your influence, but it is great.  There is no work on earth more meaningful.  I didn't like the last line of my poem very much at first, it kind of just came to me, and I thought - I'm sure my mom would not like the thought of herself on a throne, but as I pictured in my mind all of her sacrifice and love, I knew I felt so honored to be in her presence, and so would many others.  The line was true, even if she might not like it ;-)

While changing diapers, folding laundry, washing dishes, or any other mundane and endless task. Let's not forget whose work we are doing.   Motherhood is a hard, but ennobling work.

"Mothers, cherish that role that is so uniquely yours and for which heaven itself sends angels to watch over you and your little ones. Yours is the work of salvation, and therefore you will be magnified, compensated, made more than you are, better than you are, and better than you have ever been." - Elder Jeffery R. Holland