One of the Best Mother's Day Gifts
Over a decade ago my daughters gave to
me one of the best Mother's Day gifts I've ever received and I still
have it today.
It had been several months since I'd
left my second husband and money was tight. Being a colder start to
spring meant that my pool business, our livelihood was slow. The
previous Autumn we had moved into an old farm house and on the
grounds were an old barn as well as other remnants of buildings that
had stood a century before.
My working hours were long and my
girls knew that I didn't have the means to give them extra for
Mother's Day gifts that year. I told them not to worry about it and
just to make me a card or something similar. Oh did they surprise me!
I didn't know it at the time, but they
had been exploring the property when I had been away at work. We had
explored part of the barn together and realized that at one time that
property had also sold flowers, plants and other things a typical
farm and hot house might sell in days gone by. They in their
explorations however had made further discoveries.
Mother's Day came after a long and
grueling week of work. I was up about my normal time and had had
coffee to hand. The last few days I hadn't been allowed in one of the
bedrooms my girls occupied. I had decided to take the sofa bed when
we moved in as they needed their privacy more than I did. They took
advantage of that fact with my surprise.
They had me cover my face that day.
Their surprise all ready. I couldn't figure out what they were up to
as I knew that they hadn't had the necessary to buy anything and
hadn't been anywhere but school and back. What I hadn't counted on
was their resourcefulness, talents and ingenuity.
In the living room they had placed
beautifully decorated an old easel they had found in the loft of that
old barn. They had taken some of my sand paper and taken the little
bits of rust off that old iron easel. They had made flowers
decorated it each in their own wonderful ways. They made me cards
with their clever hands with more love than my heart could hold.
They told me how they had found it and it was a joint effort to bring
that big heavy easel down that rickety loft ladder. They talked
about being scared of bugs, critters and heights getting it down.
But down they brought it and had cleaned and tidied it up, just for
me. I began crying happy tears.
They knew how much I loved to draw and
paint you see. One of the things I had wanted for many years was a
real easel to be able to sit and paint outside or inside. They knew
it had been one of my dreams and they brought it into being that day.
Over the years since that easel has
had little use, but has been one of my most cherished possessions.
When all the hoopla of the last couple of years came to a head this
last Autumn and Spring, I decided that that was one of the few things
I was going to take with me, one way or the other. I've made myself
a promise you see. A promise to let the distractions of life that
held me so tightly over the years float away and take more time to
enrich my life. Using that easel more often will do just that.
I'm going to paint more and write
more. I'm going to enjoy more and do more on a Soul level. I'm
giving myself permission to read more and learn more. I'm giving
myself permission to do the things I've always wanted to do but never
taken the time to do. I'm giving myself permission to do the things
that fill my soul more and enjoy my life as I work with The Creator
more and more in understanding this.
Many thanks to my three beautiful
daughters as that easel is going to be well used.... It's still one
of the best Mother's Day Gifts Ever.....
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