Today is about something I love about a family member. I am going to pick my Mom and the attribute I most love about her is her genuine caring selfless persona and how she always wants everyone to feel special and loved.
The first time I noticed how kind my Mom was when I was maybe five years old, and we were at the children’s hospital for an appointment. A tiny child who was horribly disfigured and I suspect intellectually challenged came up to my Mom drooling and snorting. I had lived an incredibly sheltered life up to this point and I was shocked, scared and confused as it was the first time I had ever seen anyone who looked different than me. I remember my Mom smiling brightly and saying “why hello you! hi darling” and the sincere love and kindness which came from my Mom, I will never forget. I cannot recall if I asked why the child was as they were, I just remember my Mom’s reaction was very different from the other adults in the room and to this day it makes me want to cry to think about it. She was so beautiful in this moment of pure love.
My Mom has a heart for the less fortunate and she has always recognized how blessed she and her family has been. She drives my father crazy as she is “always giving things away” to others who have less. She will hear about someone through a friend at her church and something this person doesn’t have and if she has it at home, she will just give it to them.
My Mom has paid for the grocery bill of a stranger who didn’t have enough money, but she saw they had young children and were struggling. She has literally given the “jacket” off her back to someone she saw who was cold and didn’t have one.
Some people who know of her generosity have taken advantage of her, but she doesn’t mind. My Mom knows how blessed she has been and is happy if she can bring a little more warmth and joy into someone else’s life.
After graduating from University, I moved to Vancouver for a couple of years. While I was gone, I still had a bedroom at my parents’ home and I had a bunch of Barbie Dolls I had kept. I loved Barbie when I was growing up. My absolute favorite Barbie was the Pink n’ Pretty Barbie. My Mom had heard of a family in her church who had little girls and they didn’t have much and she gave all my Barbies and their clothes away to them but the one Barbie I had forbidden to give away was the Pink n’ Pretty Barbie.
When I moved back to Nova Scotia, my Mom had to confess that she ended up giving away my Pink n’ Pretty Barbie to another woman in her church who has a little girl and was struggling to make ends meet. I was upset at the time as it was the one Barbie I wanted to keep, but she was right, I wasn’t going to play with it again.
I could write a novel on the generosity and the genuine empathy my Mom has for others and how she has always recognized the abundant blessings in her life. She drives me bananas with the way moms do, but I have so much admiration for her kind, generous and loving spirit.
I am grateful for my Mom and the role model she has played in my life.
Peace & Love – Rachel
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