On Sunday it is Mother’s Day.
As a child I loved Mother’s Day - it was a happy time as the house and garden was filled with daffodils and my Mum was always very pleased to receive our handmade Mother’s Day cards. To me it signified the beginning of Spring with all the Sunny daffodils in bloom.
My Mum was very instrumental in my becoming an artist. She always encouraged us to draw and paint and make presents for family and friends. At Christmas time our house would become a hive of industry making cards and gifts for everyone.
Granny was an excellent seamstress. She, my Mum and Great Aunty Ruby taught me and my sister how to sew. Granny was very precise in her work and if you got something wrong you would be expected to unpick it and start again. In contrast Mum and Great Aunty Ruby were more of the school of “lets get this finished as best we can” and move onto the next thing.
Aunty Ruby lived round the corner from us, so we spent a lot of time with her doing lots of different activities together and being taken out for ice creams. She didn’t have any children herself but looked after the whole family as if we were her own children. She was chief babysitter for us, and some of our friends too. Aunty Ruby also looked after my Mum and her sisters when they were younger, having them to stay in the school holidays.
One year, when I was a bit older, I decided that because Great Aunty Ruby was such a Mother figure to the whole family we should give her some flowers on Mother’s Day. To me it was a fun, simple gesture because I liked flowers and I knew Aunty Ruby did too. I was amazed at the effect it had on her - she was very touched and I could see she how pleased she was that we cherished her so much.
Let’s celebrate the Mothers in our lives this Sunday 22nd March. Send them a bit of love and say thank you to them for all their hard work and caring over the years.