Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it
I laid there on the carpet of Mom and Dad's bedroom floor, with my face smushed next to the small crack at the bottom of the bathroom door. "Hey, are you in there?" I repeatedly asked as I wiggled my tiny fingers beneath the door. I'm sure all she could see from the other side was a stubby little nose and maybe the glimpse of an eye looking around wildly for a glimpse of movement, as it was pressed against the floor. "Why do you have the door shut? I need to tell you something....are you in there? I can see your feet Mama, I know you are in there. When are you coming out?" Doesn't it occur to children that when their Mother has retreated to the bathroom and locked the door, that it probably means they need a "time-out"? A little peace and quiet? A moment alone? I always wondered why in the world she would choose the bathroom! I write all this just after getting a shower tonight and watching another set of tiny fingers struggle to reach under my own bathroom door. Nonetheless, asking me why I shut the door. "Mom, I really need a snack. Are you almost done in there? I need to come in there!"
My Mama needed and deserved many breaks during my childhood, I'm sure. God is humorous at times. He gave me a child that seems to have been poured from the same personality mold that he made me from. I was a very inquisitive child. I also wanted to be a star. It wasn't uncommon to find me singing on a makeshift fireplace Stage debuting some song I had made up. I still remember the lyrics to some of them. Many times Brittany would debut as my drummer on a set of pots or pans. I wanted to know why things were like they were. I was silly, loved to dance and sing, and never.ever.stopped.talking....ever. (Some things never change.) Just last weekend as we rode home from the campground, I asked Camdyn if she ever stopped taking. To which she replied, "Uhhhh...No!"
You don't realize what knowledge your Mama has until you are a Mama yourself. I now know about those much needed "breaks". The ones where you realize if you don't escape for just a second, even just to sit on the side of the tub and breathe, you may very well lose it. Not so much because of the wearing on the nerves, but because it's hard work to bring up a child. It's hard, difficult at times, and downright exhausting. Training up a child requires patience, love, support, and a really strong relationship with the Lord.
With Mother's Day approaching, I thought of my upbringing and my mother's part in it. From an early age, I knew about Jesus. It was an important aspect of my raising. I was encouraged to sing in church from an early age. The earliest memory I have is when I sang at probably 6 years old at the church my grandfather was pastoring when he and my grandmother lived in Jacksonville. She taught me songs about Jesus, taught me about what it meant to be a Christian, and took me to church on a regular basis. I'll never forget the night I called Mama from Camp Caswell in 1998 and told her I had been saved. I knew she was crying even though I couldn't see her face. She said, I already knew. I remember thinking that was the weirdest thing. How could she possibly know this? She's miles away back at home..."a momma just gets these feelings" she told me. I know about these feelings now myself.
She taught me other things too. She taught me about hard work and how when things get tough, you just keep pushing. She taught me selflessness and putting others first; I seen this every time she placed something back on the rack that she wanted for herself and instead bought something for me or my sister. She taught me love. There wasn't a day that passed that she didn't tell me she loved me. She taught me priorities. I didn't realize it then, but doing the hard things first (then it was cleaning my room or helping with laundry...I'll never make my kids do chores I always thought...) always comes before fun. She's still teaching me things. Most recently she has taught me strength. She is a pillar of strength. She has been through a lot in the past ten years. She has gracefully went through the passing of both her parents, deals resiliently with a stressful job, and even puts up with Dad (just kidding!!!) :) She is one of the strongest women I know. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree I suppose. My Granny showed all of us her strength the past year. She fought long past what the doctors thought she would. Some would call it stubbornness, but I call it strength. I can only hope to have half the strength that the both of them have.
The verse above, really sums up my childhood and the raising I had from my Mama. She trained me up in a way that was pleasing to God and because of that, I am the person I am today. I will never be able to thank her enough for teaching me the things she did or most importantly for teaching me about the Lord. My hope is that she can see, it did not depart from me. It is still with me, as this verse from Proberbs details. Leading me to the Lord was one of the greatest gifts she has ever given me. It's one that doesn't get passed down to another or sent off to the goodwill after it sits in the closet gathering dust. It has carried me to where I am in my life and where I will continue. For that, I'm eternally thankful to my Mama.
To all of the special women in my life who have shaped me into who I am today: Mama, Granny H and Granny C, My Mother in Law, My Aunt Teesy, Aunt Diane, Aunt Cindy, and Aunt Kathy and my sister...Happy Mother's Day here and in heaven. I love you all.