Momma....You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet.

Momma with Cooper, the day he came home from the hospital

In honor and recognition of the lovely month of November, the month in which I was born, I am writing a multiple part series on the people that have influenced my life the most, or people that I want to imitate in my life but I am failing miserably in doing so. (doesn't mean that I will ever stop trying)  Featuring a new person every few days, (let's face it, I am not disciplined enough to make it EVERY day) these articles are identifying various people who have impacted me in the most dramatic ways.  I only feel that it is appropriate to make the first entry about my Momma, my best friend and my steady rock.  So without further ado,  here are some things that she has tried to instill in me over the years, either intentionally or unintentionally. 



Momma and Caroline at Christmas, 2009

 1.  Sacrifice and Selflessness.....we always came first 
 Ok, so I didn't say that I am a fast learner, because I haven't exactly learned these two traits well, but looking back over the years with my more seasoned hindsight, I have realized to some extent how selfless my mother is regarding me.  She has truly went without material possessions so that I may have.  I cannot count all the exact instances of these precious sacrifices, but I want her to know that I see them clearly now.  I see the love that pours out of her heart for Mack and I, and the wherewithal to go barefoot in the snow for the two of us if she thought it would make us happy.  I believe that it took having my own children to realize the magnitude and scope of her love for us.  I truly (along with my brother) feel like my momma's proudest possessions, and she has never done a single thing for me to doubt otherwise.  This also makes me feel ashamed, however. To have grown up as I did with blinders, seeing only what I wanted to see, seeing only what relates to me and my comfort.  I have wasted 35 years (oops! didn't mean to let that age slip...moving along)  not letting her know everyday how much I love and appreciate everything she is and everything she does.  I would love her desperately no matter what, but her selflessness makes me want to repay her with all my love and admiration every day.

Grandparent's Day

2.  Dry sense of humor....or laughter through pain
My momma clearly has the driest sense of humor of anyone I know, and she always makes me laugh...at the MOST inopportune times!!  Momma can take the most morbid and sad moments and manage to comment (sometimes unintentionally) a quip that can make you grin through the tears or seriousness.  However, I believe this comes from having superb emotional strength.  She is truly a "steel magnolia" and has been since way before the phrase became so popular.  Not one to wallow in self-pity or give into melodramatic drama that is so characteristic of our gender, she can truly make a strong face in a bad situation.  Laughter through tears is truly a wonderful emotion.  It reminds us that life does go on, and that what is waiting for us in eternity for those who believe in Jesus Christ, is sorrow free.  Isn't that grand?  Therefore, it isn't necessary to take this life here on earth too seriously, for "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine."  Proverbs 17:22  Just ask my momma, life is truly too short to spend it not laughing about the little things that get you down.

3.  Girls can like football, too....and look good at the same time
Football as a spectator sport has come a long way.  I truly feel in this day and age of all-access, twenty four hour a day media coverage and the soap opera-like drama going on off the field, more ladies watch the sport that I have channeled into since I came into this world.  My momma has always been an avid follower and watcher of college football (so was my great-grandmother, but that is another story).  She can call a block in the back before the yellow flag is flung from the pocket of a referee and cheer with gusto a spectacular catch that results in a touchdown for her beloved Crimson Tide.  Few women I know watch the games with as much attention and fervor (much to her blood pressure's chagrin).  But never one to be labeled with a stereotype, my momma is what you would call today a "guy's girl", but she is as prissy and conscious about good grooming as the next princess that wouldn't know a wide receiver from a defensive lineman.  Don't let her looks fool you, she can get as feisty as a firecracker about a erroneous (depends on which way you look at it) pass interference call (or lack thereof). But then lower her blood pressure after a particular stressful game with some good old fashioned retail therapy.  Everything in moderation, my momma has good balance, she can hang with the boys and giggle with the girls.  And everything else in between.

4.  Her foundation is set upon Jesus Christ....and she showed us how to lay our own stones
My momma has always taken us to church, no matter what.  There was never a question of if we were going on Sunday morning.  We got up, we got ready, and barring sickness we were there.  She and her two little troops.  Looking back, sometimes for her it would have been easier to be more lackadaisical about church attendance.  She was a young mother, and most of the time she went by herself for whatever reason.  The young sometimes do not realize the importance of Christ in their own lives, much less the lives of their children, but my momma had us in Sunday school and taught us at a young age about salvation and the love of our Creator.  Maybe this is the most important thing that she ever did for us, surrounding us in Christian love and a showing us how a devotion to Christ and his church was a never failing source on strength and power. I have been blessed with many Godly people in my life, which you will see in the coming blogs; however, it is my mom's persistence, prayers, and presence that have helped me the most in my struggling walk with Christ.



Caroline's 4th Birthday

 There you have it.  A small glimpse into the personality of my Momma.  I probably should clarify that this blog and the following ones that will honor and revere the some of the most important people to me will contain certain aspects of each one's character that I have and that I also WISH to have.  For some reason or another, each of these people have things about them that I admire and that I pack away in my memory for my journey in this short life.  My mother is no exception.  She is strong, beautiful, selfless, and chock full of common sense.  Thank you, Jesus, for giving me her as my mother. 

Any love is good love,

So I took what I could get.

Then she looked at me with those big, brown eyes

And said, "You ain't seen nothin' yet"
                                                      - Bachman Turner Overdrive