29 Again for the 20th Time

 

Today is the 20th Anniversary of my Mother’s 29th birthday. Seriously, if my mom were here and you asked her how old she is she would tell you 29 without skipping a beat. I find this particularly amusing given the fact that I, her eldest child, will be turning 30 in 5 months and 28 days. It wouldn’t have mattered to her though she still would’ve said she was 29 even if I were 40. That’s my mom.

As a reminder to us not to forget about her twenty-faux birthday there is as we speak a Hurricane (now Tropical Storm) Leslie churning off the shores of Bermuda (probably enjoying the beach views). Now you may think that it is just an extreme coincidence that the Hurricane naming people happened to decide that the 12th named storm of 2012 was going to carry the name Leslie but my response remains that God didn’t have to make it so that there were 12 named storms in 2012 so I’m pretty sure its more than coincidence.

Even more obvious than the weather is the fact that after my mom passed away my Aunt Diane was given a lemon tree that was supposed to start producing lemons in November and low and behold there are 5 lemons on it this week in an “I’ll bloom when I darn well want to” kinda way….that is totally my mom.

I’ve been dreading this day since April 22nd because it forces me to think of what we’ve lost and what my mom has/will miss. I get so mad at her when I think of what she has left me to deal with. I am sad at what she is missing…my brother’s team/coaching accomplishments, his new engagement, his pending wedding, Lindsey’s prom-s, Lindsey’s graduation, Lindsey growing up, John Brooks growing up, all of our future children. Do you realize that this was the first year in my entire school life that I didn’t talk to my mom on the first day of school? How weird is that. I am only 29 years old and I’ll never have another conversation with my mother. I hate that.

I am usually pretty good at being optimistic and looking on the bright side of things and I am thankful that God has a plan for my family and for me and I am thankful that my mom has taught my siblings and me to be strong and help each other I just wish she could have found some of that strength for herself when she needed it most.

Happy Birthday Mom. We miss you.