Mother's Day is fast approaching. it is time to remember mom. As it draws near, I think about how strong my mother was, and how her skills and courage kept our family together. I remember my dad reminiscing about my mother and all the hard times they went through together. He readily admitted that he couldn't have done it without her. I realized that my father had a real admiration for my mother as a person who had personal traits and skills that complimented his own. They were a team. I didn't think of the word admiration specifically when I thought of my mom.  I thought of things she did like bake bread, iron my clothes, fix our meals, and to be there when I was hurt. Admiration is the genuine approval and respect for another person. Now it started to make sense. My dad told me once that you can't have real love without respect for the other person. I admired my mom as I got older, but nothing like my father. Late in life, they wanted to borrow money to fix up the house where my father was born, but they didn't want a house payment. Dad told me that they sat around the kitchen table pouring over figures. Finally, he said, mom figured out how they could do it. She sent him to the bank the next morning with all the numbers in a Manila folder. He tried to get her to go, but she wouldn't hear of it. The bank approved the loan and they spent their last days in his boyhood home. Dad would tell anyone that it was mom that figured how they could restore their home, and when he did, she'd get a little sparkle in her eyes. I think she had a great admiration for my dad.

Happy Mother's Day, mom. I miss you.