Whether our mothers are still with us or they have passed, this Sunday, we are thinking about the woman who gave us life and then, in her own way, loved us and formed our foundation

Moms are not perfect; we are human, but my mom was married when she was sixteen and spent the next seventy years mothering five daughters, their kids, and their grandkids.

She has been gone nearly twenty years, but I still hear her voice and see the sparkle in her eyes as she says funny little idioms. My sisters and I wrote down the ones we remembered over the years, and I couldn’t find the list for the longest time, but I ran across it this week. So, please think of your mom as I share a little of mine with you today.

About:

doing something well: “Well, that’s finer than frog’s hair.”

doing something creative: “Well, that slicker than goose grease.”

almost anything in her day: “All is in Divine order.”

saying something disrespectful: “Someday, you’re going to be sorry for speaking to me like that.” She was

correct. She might also add, “Does that make you feel better?”

worrying about something: “Just don’t think about it, Honey.”

someone’s anger: “He (she) can get glad in the same shoes he got mad in.”

asking too many times, “What’s that?” “Cat fur to make kitten britches.”

anyone saying unkind words or cursing: “God love her,” “God bless him,” “Bless her on her way,” or “They’ll get their come-up-mums.”

working on the Lord’s day: “Sew on Sunday and rip out with your nose on Monday.”

helping her do something: “You’re as handy as a pocket on a shirt.”

a stain on our clothes or blemish on our faces: “Nobody will notice on a galloping horse.”

past actions or behavior, “That’s all water under the bridge,” or “Tomorrow is another day.”

our desire to do something: “If it makes you happy, Honey, it tickles me to death.”

being unhappy with what was happening in our lives: “Life is what you make it.”

catching us being naughty: “Pretty is as pretty does,” or, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.”

wearing the ruffles and lace dresses, she sewed for us: “Cute as a bug’s ear” and “Pretty as a picture.”

fighting with each other: “You hug her and say you’re sorry.”

That’s a snapshot of my mom. She was loving, stern, creative, tidy, self-taught, and a lifelong learner and teacher.

How about yours?

Now, make yourself a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY. Closing with one last quote from my mother. Her answering machine message was: “Have a far-out, tuned-in, super fantastic day!”

Until the next time: Live while you live.

Jennifer Goble, Ph.D., LPC, is the author of “My Clients…My Teachers,” and the blogger and writer of Rural Women Stories: www.ruralwomenstories.com.

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