Many many years ago, I was put to bed. I had previously miscarried, so this pregnancy I had to keep a little quieter than my normal frenetic pace. I don't sit still well. I was not doing well. Mom came to the rescue. Mom was a needlepointer. In her life - her life with my father - she needed calm and peace. She found it in needlepoint. She didn't like doing the colors - she didn't like anything fancy. She LOVED the tranquility of doing a background in a beautiful shade on a preworked piece. That was what she decided I needed to do.
Mom brought me a little duck to make into a seat for a little chair. She taught me to basketweave. About 2" into the piece, I revolted. I asked Mom to get me some blank canvas and some colors. I had no earthly idea what I was doing, but I was bound and determined to create my own design. I had a blast! By the time Jennifer was born, I was on a roll. After a few years, I was painting canvases for me, my friends and all my aunts.
I moved to Lexington when Jennifer was 4. I was pregnant with Elizabeth. It was a hormonal surge that changed my life again. I was driving in an older section of town and saw a "For Rent" sign. I was furious because the only needlepoint shop in Lexington didn't allow any children to enter. Jennifer was the best behaved child in the world - HOW DARE THEY! So, of course, I rented the old townhouse and went home to tell my husband that I was opening a shop. Mom was the only one who was as thrilled as I was. She has always been and will always be my biggest supporter - my cheerleader.
Mom is 92 - soon to be 93. My husband calls her The Queen Mother. She plays bridge 3 days a week and makes gorgeous baskets on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Life has a way of toying with you - this has turned out to be the happiest time of her life. Mom was one of 6 kids. They were abandoned by their father when she was 6. She married my Dad. While I adored him, I must admit he would have been impossible for me to be married to him. Murder and mayhem come to mind. I had a younger brother born with lung cancer. He actually lived to be 40 but was mentally unstable and in and out of prison. She can finally relax and not dread the telephone ringing.
Those of you who know me know that if I don't see Mom on Sunday, she is in the Emergency Room on Monday. A trip we were taking to Ireland was almost derailed by a hospital trip for all the following; appendicitis, gall bladder problems, uterine cancer. The fact that she had no appendix, no gall bladder and no uterus made no difference.
I owe my life to this woman in so very many ways. First, just the fact that she is my Mom. Second, I would not have been doing what I LOVE for 37 years without her pushing me into it. Thirdly, she has loved me unconditionally. I needed that. She tells me when I screw up, she praises me when I do well. She always speaks her mind. I can't imagine life without her.
Happy Mother's Day !
