I was very lucky to have a sweet, kind, loving Mother who always looked out for and wanted the best for me. She always made me feel very loved and cared for. Mom has lots of great qualities, and I admire many things about her. One of her qualities was liking to help. She volunteered for several things.
She went to our local hospital every week for many years and helped out with the patients. She’d assisted the nurses by delivering things, writing letters, reading and visiting with the patients in the long term care section.. She told me once she would have liked to have been a nurse and thought maybe that’s what I’d like to do. Her mother and aunt had both been nurses. She also delivered Meals On Wheels to seniors that needed meals.
She was the room mother several different years for my sister and my classes. I was always so proud to have her show up, she always dressed very nice and looked so pretty.
When her Dad could no longer live in his home by himself she had him move into her home. Mom and Dad moved into a twin bed in a bedroom upstairs and he moved into their downstairs bedroom. He had diabetes and he eventually became confined to a hospital bed. Mom cared for him day and night until he passed away.
She volunteered at her church and was in charge of wedding receptions for anyone who wanted to hire the church for their reception. She’d plan and purchase what was needed and get volunteers to help out at the event. She would then, set it up, make the punch, and be there when the reception was actually happening to make sure everything went smoothly. She would then clean up when it was over.
She also belonged to a church group that would have fund raisers for different needy people and causes. She made lots of different arts and craft items, Christmas wreaths, and yummy cookies and desserts to sell at the church bazaar.
I think though, that the quality I admire most about my mother was how she cared for my Dad. Dad developed diabetes when he was a young child and he had to take insulin shots every day. He had to have three meals a day that had all of the food groups in them. The meals also had to be at the same time every day. If these things didn’t happen, Dad’s blood sugar level would get too low, and he’d have a diabetic reaction and be in danger of slipping into a coma. He also wasn’t suppose to have sugar. Mom never enjoyed cooking. She learned to cook after she was married. She made three big meals every day with protein, fruit, starch and a vegetable. Each summer Mom canned quarts and quarts of fruit with artificial sugar in them. Dad always ate breakfast before going off to work and he’d come home for lunch and dinner every day. Mom and Dad were married for 58 years. When they were traveling, Mom would always make sure to start looking for a restaurant when it was time to eat. She’d also make sure to take sandwiches, fruit and or snacks whenever they went anywhere.
Mom didn’t work outside of the home when I was young. It always made me feel good to come home from school and have her be there. She did get jobs outside the home when I was in high school. She worked for several years and always made sure Dad had his meals.
Dad fell and broke his hip when he was in his mid 70’s. He never fully recovered. He ended up in a wheel chair and Mom took care of him at home until he died. His doctors were always amazed at how well he did, living with diabetes for so many years. I think a lot of the credit for how well he did, goes to Mom. She was a great example to me of being a giving and loving person, and of thinking of others before yourself. She really demonstrated unconditional love.
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