My Mom, the wonderful, the beautiful, the talented

This post is brought to you by Light the World. All opinions are 100% mine.

Today I’m going to stray from the usual topic and talk about my Mom. I hope you will enjoy learning a little something personal about me and my family. 

I have five siblings, and as far as I know, I’ve always been the hard child.

Don’t let those angel eyes fool you.

At least that’s what I understand. I’ve always been the kid that gives my parents grief. It didn’t stop with family either. My middle school teachers would ask, “Why can’t you be more like Adrian?” <—an older more perfect, behaved sister of mine. I’ve struggled a little when I think about my childhood, but only because I feel bad that I caused so much grief to so many. 

My mom has oodles of stories of how I was hard. I wrote my name on the walls. I scribbled permanent marker on the brand new wallpaper. I flushed a whole banana down the toilet. I teased and tortured everyone including the household cat. I scratched my brother with my fingernails. I kissed all the boys in my high school….all the things that make parenthood an absolute nightmare. 

Why am I telling you this? Well, somehow I turned out ok. Somehow, now, I feel like a responsible adult. 

That reason is my Mom, her testimony, and her example. 

She’s the most talented lady I’ve ever known. She sings like an angel. She’s a freakin’ awesome public speaker. She’s a spiritual giant. She’s a concert pianist. She’s kind and loving, and she made us share and develop our talents too. I say she “made” us because that’s the only way to appropriately describe being dragged to choir every Sunday. 

She saw the good in us when we were being “bad,” and although we thought her expectations were too high, we strived to be better, to do good, and to be more like her as we grew up. She gives 110% in everything she is asked to do. She is a talented calligrapher, dang good at chalk paintings, and taught us all to magnify our callings in the church. {For those who aren’t LDS, this means to do our best in the positions that we are asked to serve}.

She supported our wants and desires, and sacrificed for us. She travelled to our sporting/dancing events even if that meant a 4 hour car ride to get there. She would watch our games/dances, and then turn around and drive the 4 hours home. When I was getting married, I wanted an expensive wedding dress. She bought it for me. I know that was a sacrifice for my parents. 

When I was young, she was constantly taking dinner to families around us. She always had dinner on the table at home too. She forced us to go caroling as a family every Christmas, and we always visited the sick and the elderly as we went. My mom wrote in a journal our entire lives. She has the most beautiful handwriting ever. She types faster than anyone I’ve ever seen, and she loves fiercely and loyally. If she thinks you can accomplish something, you better bet she will ride you until you do. 

When I was getting my master’s degree, I wrote a Toulminian analysis of Walmart for my capstone thesis. It sounds like hell and it truly was. My Mom read every word to help me correct grammar and fix what needed to be fixed. After many and many drafts, lots of prayers, and lots of editing by my Mom, it was around 120 pages when we finished. It was the biggest accomplishment I’ve ever completed, and she is the reason I finished it. At the time, I wanted to scream at her every time she would ask me if I was working on it. {Sorry Mom}.

I wish I could say that I’m the easy child now. But, she would probably quickly disagree to that statement. For some reason, I am the one that questions the status quo. Maybe that’s just part of my personality. But because of that, my Mom and I butt heads at times. Sometimes, I don’t know if I can speak my mind, and that’s hard sometimes for the both of us. I naturally tend to be the logical one, and want to fix all the things instead of being a good listener. I’m working on that. 

In the Family The Proclamation to the World, it says,

“Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.” 

Sometimes I have to remind myself to be more nurturing. I drive my Mom crazy that I’m not more sentimental. I try! But, she and I are wired differently. I think I’m ultimately the kid that takes up her stack of patience. But I wanted her to know that I have learned a boat load of things from her. I wanted her to know that she’s incredibly amazing. 

I have fond memories of visiting Grandpa and Grandma M’s house {my mom’s parents}. But they are both in Heaven now, and both have been gone for a long time. I know she is lonely here without them. But, she’s done a dang good job raising us. I see her loving parents inside her. They were wonderful, and so is she. Thank you Mom for being the over-bearing Mom that I needed.

I cannot imagine how our Heavenly Father feels when He sees us make mistakes. He pushes us to obey His commandments, to be kind, supportive, and loving of our neighbors and family, but sometimes we miss the mark. But He pushes us because He knows what’s good for us. He knows our potential. After all, without Him we would never reach it. He sent His Son to give us a way to atone for our mistakes, and I’ve personally felt that cleansing power. 

Because of Him I am a better human being, a better Mother and striving to be who He wants me to be. I am doing all of those things because of what my Mom taught me. Thank you Mom. I owe you everything. 

I love you. 

Love,

Brooke

Share who helped you be who you are today by sharing experiences and serving others this holiday season in 25 ways in 25 days. Use the hashtag #LighttheWorld. My experienced is linked to Day 13. 🙂