There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die… –Ecclesiastes, 3:1 Yesterday, my sister drove to the small retirement village where my mother lived, and parked outside her apartment. The person who moved into my mother’s place has displayed an […]
Sprinkles
“Mama, just for a moment we’re happy. Let’s really look at one another.” –Thornton Wilder, Our Town Tonight, on the way to Bridgy’s baton twirling class, I stopped and got a frozen iced coffee from McDonald’s. I guess I forgot you’re not supposed to drink caffeine after 3 p.m., which is why I’m awake at […]
Dearest Mom,
Dearest Mom, Happy Mother’s Day, Momma. You were my mom and always will be. And what a precious mom you were. It was so sweet coming to your place in the evenings. I marveled at how you sat in your chair and rolled your hair. At 83, you still wanted to look pretty and special. […]
Withholding Love
The other day, I heard my late mother’s spirit tell me to write from my heart. That the secret to my success as a writer would come from being honest. I need to excavate the truth to the tip of my tongue, and no longer second-guess the Spirit that flows through me. I have to […]
All In
When I saw her body laying on the kitchen floor, I was overcome with sorrow. All the life had gone out of her. It slipped away in the dark morning of Christmas Eve. I know she raged against it. After all, she had fought for years to stay with us. Through endless procedures and countless trips […]
Beautiful Mother, October 1, 1934 – December 24, 2017
The following obituary for my mother appeared in the Sunday Oklahoman, January 28, 2018. He will gather, He will gather The gems for His kingdom, All the pure ones, all the bright ones, His loved and His own. Like the stars of the morning, His bright crown adorning, They shall shine in their beauty, Bright […]
Inside My Mother’s Bible, This Purple Satin Bookmark
My mother had her first heart attack the year I turned 21. It was the late 1980s, and the country was in a recession. Junk bonds had collapsed and stocks had crashed. Both my parents were unemployed, and for months neither one of them could find work. Sadly, my mom had lost her job due […]