The Side I Never Knew

Today would have been my mom's 84th birthday.  She was taken home to be with her Lord almost 3 years ago after a long battle with Alzheimer's.  She was a great lady - the best I ever knew.  (Sorry Prudence, but she'll always be first.  But you know that you are 1A!)  Dad has told me often since she's been gone that her time home with me was the best she ever knew.  Not because I was a special child, but because she was never able to enjoy being a mom to my 3 older siblings.

Mom married her high school sweetheart right after her graduation in 1941.  She had 3 kids before 1948, and during that time her husband had a tour of duty in Europe during WWII.  When he returned, he came back as an alcoholic.  After he'd get paid for delivering eggs, he'd be gone for days on drinking binges.  In the early 1950s, he died of a brain aneurismal.  Throughout this time, Mom had to rely on family (she had 9 brothers and sisters) and work to make ends meet.  She (and I) grew up in a small town where everyone knew your name.  The local banker took pity on her and lent her hundreds of dollars over the years - which she diligently paid back.  She worked part-time as a waitress in her sister's cafe', but she spent most of her time at working for another sister in her printing business.  I'm not sure how many years she worked there, but she became very proficient at setting and proofing type.  Reading sentences backwards with letters and characters in reverse as well blows my mind!  But she did all this at the expense of being home with her children.  Like I said, she had plenty of family in the area to help with the rearing.  Minus a couple of detours, everyone turned out alright.  But she didn't get to enjoy them.

Things changed for her in 1961 when she met my dad.  They hit it off almost immediately and were married in March of 1962.  I was born in 1964 and she was determined to make up for lost opportunities.  She never worked an outside job again.  She was home when I left for school in the morning and was there when I got home.  She helped me with my homework.  I can't count the number of class projects and crafts she helped me make. In three months of hard work and eye excercises, she "cured" me of my lazy eye.  I didn't need glasses until my freshman year of college.  Dad traveled about 2-3 nights of the week, so she and I were left to eat meals by ourselves.  She always made my favorite foods, even though she'd sometimes just have cereal or a salad.  And she aways had time for me.

So when I ran across this picture this weekend, I started thinking about the side of Mom I never knew, and how fortunate I was to be born when I was.  Thanks God.  Thanks Mom.  And Happy Birthday.