Happy Mother’s Day everyone! I hope it will be a day of peace and joy as you honor those special ladies who have sacrificed so much for you and your family.
My own mother passed away in 2004 and I will always hold her memory dear. She had unbridled belief in my potential and I can largely thank her for the confidence I have that all things are possible. I missed seeing her in the audience last Saturday night in Dallas, Texas when the Association of Christian Women in Media honored me with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Mom would undoubtedly have been proud of me and, I think, somewhat “justified”. After all, she never doubted her children’s ability to excel in their work.
There is another highly influential woman I’d like to honor this Mother’s Day – my mother’s mother. I’d like to tell you a bit about her in this excerpt from Scenes from My Life, a book of poetry.
She lived in a small house my father built
From New Mexico to Florida she had come
My mother’s mom
She was small of stature with wisdom in her eyes
The blood of conquistadores running through her veins
And that of Mexican Indians I am told
And a French-Canadian named Beaubien
Who made his way south near two centuries ago
Her full name was María Luisa Irene Cristina Valdez de Sauer
But I knew her simply as “Weesie”, my grandmother
I sensed grief in her heart more often than not
Over what – I couldn’t know
There was always something special we shared
Something still powerful and present today…
 Weesie circa 1950
Perhaps you’ll indulge me by allowing me to share more about this special woman? Keep in mind the poem is written from the perspective of a small boy:
I got my own bed at night in the one extra room
Falling eventually into fitful sleep
Who knows what time it was when I awoke
Still dark outside, I padded over to Weesie’s room
Waking her and telling her I couldn’t sleep
For some strange reason I couldn’t sleep
And in her gentle way
She made room for me
And I climbed into her bed straightaway
I remember she taught me how to pray
And her words I did repeat
As I lay there under the sheets
Weesie close by
Protecting me through the night
In the morning, when I awoke
And shook my head of sleep
She told me I had kicked her to the floor just before dawn
She was chuckling about it now
Saying it was okay
That breakfast she would prepare
As I apologized and washed my face
She made a poached egg
And toast with marmalade
Then sitting close by, sipping her tea,
She had a little talk with me
Her brown eyes warming my soul
The morning a few hours old
I since have thought
Those times were like being with God
But then I didn’t know
Dedicated to my darling Weesie and all the “Weesies” out there on this Mother’s Day 2017… Know that you are loved (just as you have loved all of us) and your influence on your children and grandchildren will never fade away.
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