Her Name is Grace

My Mom's name is Grace.  I don't know how her parents could have known who she would become but they gave her the perfect name.  I looked up the word, grace, and found this meaning... elegance or beauty of form, manner, motion, or action.  It is as if the dictionary writer's knew my Mom!

This picture is her in the mid 1980's.  To her right is a photo of some of her grandchildren.  Does this woman look like anyone's grandmother? 

When I was a teenager, out with my Mom, we were often mistaken for sisters.  Maybe that should have bothered me but instead, it contributed to my pride in her.  It also made me hopeful and grateful for genetics! 

But more than her physical beauty, my Mom lives by her faith.  I don't think many realize this, but she's really the one who came up with the slogan, What would Jesus do?  Really!  When I was little, I remember her telling me that I should always try to behave how Jesus would.  She didn't just say those words, though, she lived them.  That was her greatest gift to her children.

This woman has been dealt some pretty harsh blows in life.  She's had more than her share of disappointment, but she always came up smiling.  During rough patches she displays more character than anyone I know.  She really, truly puts others first and she does so without a hint of martyr. 

Don't get me wrong.  My Mom is also a woman of strength and determination!  She is very, very smart and can accomplish anything she sets out to do.  I will tell you she can make most any shack into a beautiful home.  She infuses beauty into corners of the world that seemed to have none.  That is one of her greatest talents.  She could make her children feel secure during the most tumultuous circumstances, and she could breathe kindness into the worst of situations.

My Mom mothered more than just her own children.  All of my friends wanted to be around her more.  One of my friends referred to her as Mommy #2, not displacing her own mother but showing what my Mom meant in her life as well.  I ALWAYS knew I was special because I was HER daughter.

So, here's to the best example of womanhood I have ever encountered.  I am so very grateful for this woman who raised us and loved us unconditionally, this woman of talent and compassion, this woman of true grace... my MOM.

I love you, Mom