Misery is having the flu visit your home.  The flu, COVID, or any other sickness is a visitor that wears out its welcome.  About the time one person gets well, another person gets sick.  You live in dread that the “bug” will start over again once everyone gets well.  I am not too big of a baby about most things, but I don’t like to get sick.  I always tell the Lord I don’t have time to be sick.  Regardless, one of the best things about being sick is getting well. I have a new appreciation of sleeping at night and getting up in the morning feeling well.

As weird as it may sound, when I get sick, I think of my mom.  No matter how old I get, pleasant thoughts of Mom spoiling me when I was sick fill my mind.  Everyone has his favorite soup that his mom made when he was sick.  At my house, our favorite soup is potato soup.  Do you know why?  My mom comforted me with potato soup when I was young, and I have continued the tradition.  I still love potato soup.  It is especially good when you have a cold or when it is a damp, dreary day.

What about the cool cloths on your forehead when you had a fever?  That felt so good.  Mom would get up at all hours of the night to make sure my fever had not gone up, even though she was sick herself.  Mom always set the clock to make sure she didn’t miss the next dose of Tylenol.  No matter what the sickness, Mom seemed to make it better, even when it was a sickness of the heart.

Do you remember when you had your first heartbreak?  The first time someone dumped you was horrible.  Who wiped away your tears?  Mom did of course.  She’s the one who told you it would be better with time, while you insisted that you would never love anyone else.  She was right, as usual.  In time, you fell for someone else with the same enthusiasm as before.  Mom made an occupation of fixing things that were broken.

When I was young, I thought I had the greatest mom in the world.  Mom’s job got much harder when I became a teenager.  I just knew that my mom was trying to keep me tied to the house and restrict my freedoms.  I told myself, “When I become a parent, I am not going to treat my kids this way.” 

Well, guess what?  After I was married and had my own family, I tried desperately to remember all of the things my mom did for me when I was a child, as well as the rules she had for me as a teenager.   Some of the rules my parents had are different than ours were of course, but the way I cared for my children when they were sick was very similar to when my mom cared for me.  She became so much smarter the older I got.  I began to realize how hard it was to be the mother of a teenager.  So much thought and prayer had to go into every decision.  I thought that was going to be the most difficult part of motherhood.

But I was wrong.  I think the hardest part of motherhood is letting go.  When your children get married and you are not able to sit by their beds and talk things through anymore, you wonder how they will get along without you.  When you are not able to fix the hurts or ground them when they are out of line, it is scary.  Most of all, you know their spouses don’t love them as much as you do.  You have hopes that as they grow together, their spouses will one day love them as much or more than you do.   When you have grandchildren, you know you must keep your mouth shut.  If you want your children to listen to you, it is best to save your comments for the really important matters.  I realize if I give input too often, nothing I say will be heard.  My mom and I did not always see eye to eye in the way I was raising my family, but I appreciate her concerns so much more now that I have grandchildren of my own.

As I look back over my life, motherhood has a whole new meaning.  When I was young, I thought I had the greatest mom in the world.  When I was a teenager, I thought I could have done so much better.  When I became a mom, my admiration for her grew tremendously.  When I became a grandmother, my respect for her blossomed, and now that she is in Heaven, I know she was the mom I needed.

I try to take care of my family in every way possible.  I can only hope that I have been a great comfort to them, and when they look back on their lives, they will remember me and say with a smile, she was the mom I needed.

Proverbs 31:25-30

Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come. She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.  She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.

 Mrs. Worthington has five children and twelve grandchildren.  She serves as Principal of Pathway Christian Academy in Goldsboro.