Contemplating Mother's Day, Now and Then

Mother’s Day brings a lot of thoughts to mind. I can’t help but think of my own mother, of course, and my grandmothers – all of them that I grew up knowing.

Granny Bond - We'd spend two weeks in Crossville during the summers. Uncle Bob and Aunt Chris and kids would be home from overseas; Uncle David and Aunt Evelyn and family lived here, as did Aunt Margaret and Uncle Luther and family - so we saw all of them. The rest of the family would wander in from Oklahoma, California, Ohio. Granny would cook fresh vegetables out of her garden, a fresh chicken that had met it's fate at the hands of my granny. We'd drink fresh cold water from a hand pump that had a tin cup tied to the base; and yes, there was an outhouse - I was grown when granny put in indoor plumbing! I remember her hair in a tight knot at the back of head - she stayed with us in the Fort Myers when Martha was born and that was the first time I saw her hair down. It hit her waist!!! What my kids missed not knowing my Granny Bond.

Granny Hall – when I think of her, I picture her in the kitchen with Aunt Amelia – the family table covered with the leftovers from a big breakfast; the food left on the table with a tablecloth thrown over it to protect it – making it easy to lift the cloth and grab a biscuit with jelly – just in case any of the kids or family came in hungry. I remember her sitting in her rocker on the porch of the Hall home in Monterey, listening to the trains go by, watching the busy ballpark as kids gathered for a late afternoon game of baseball. She also wore her hair in a knot and it was long, too. Must've been a trend - right. It was convenient, I'm sure.

Granny Black – mixing biscuits in her large wooden bowl, rolling them out on the pink marble slab (which is now in mine and mom’s kitchen), wearing her dress with the white collar and the bib apron, her sturdy black shoes that tied and her little rimless glasses. As a little girl, I loved walking the yard with Granny, looking at the flowers, hearing all about how they grow, the care they need to grow big and strong in a garden. When Granny died, most of the family wanted ‘things’ out of her house; I wanted her yard. So, Mama Babe, Pa, Daddy and I dug up her Peonies, Flowering Almond, some of her daylilies and iris. I didn’t get any of her rose bushes and I’ve wished over the years that I had taken the time. I’ve always heard that roses require a lot of care to grow…but what doesn’t. On that vein, my thoughts run to my own children. By the way, her hair was shorter, no "pomp-knot".

Mama Babe – What fun Mama Babe was to be around as we were growing up. I remember the year she and Pa got “Susie-Mary”, a tabby cat that Guy and I thought was the most beautifulist cat that ever was! We loved Susie-Mary. I never tired of hearing her tell the story of us naming her – Guy and I always fussed over who was in charge of her and what we’d name her; Guy wanted her to be Susie and I wanted her to be Mary. We compromised - Guy’s half was Susie and my half was Mary! So many stories I could tell about living near Mama Babe and Pa – oh, well, I just can’t stand it, so I’ll tell one more this entry. When Guy and I were about 5 and 3, maybe 4 and 2, we’d play in the front yard, dancing for the cars as they drove by this quiet little lane, Guy singing at the top of his lungs “Dance, dance, pull down your underpants…” then we both RUN like crazy to hide behind the big palm trees in the yard. We’re sure no one saw us……RIGHT! Most of this was before Martha came along…..

Of course, thinking about Mother’s Day and grandmothers, brings me to my own mother. One of the things I remember most about momma and growing up was that there was NOTHING we couldn’t do! We were smart and capable. She was always at home for us when we came in from school, always willing to drive us anywhere we wanted to go, chaperon any event that we needed her to chaperon. When Martha was born, she tagged along, and being almost 9 years older, it started all over again for mom. She encouraged us to do anything we wanted to do with our lives – there was nothing she didn’t think we could accomplish if we wanted it bad enough.

The only thing I wanted to do when I grew up was be a mother. While everyone in my graduating class was making plans to go to college and leave home, it was secondary to a family for me. I went to school, but at the end of the day, I wanted what momma and daddy had – three kids, a cat and a dog.

I’m not that old, so I say this loosely – many years have passed – 50+ since those days Guy and I played in the front yard around the palm trees. I’m a mother, a mother-in-law, an aunt and great-aunt. I’ve come a long way in 58 years and I’m so proud to be at this crossroads of my life – a grandmother.

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Child of my child,
Heart of my heart.
Your smile bridges
The years between us…
I am young again, discovering
The world through your eyes.
You have the time to listen
And I have the time to spend,
Delighted to gaze at familiar,
Loved features made new in you again.
Through you, I see the future.
Through me, you’ll see the past.
In the present, we’ll love one another
As long as these moments last.
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