HonorĂ© de Balzac once stated: “A mother’s happiness is like a beacon, lighting up the future but reflected also on the past in the guise of fond memories.” May is the month when the promise of spring’s new life takes root and begins to blossom. There is a sense of motherly nurturing attributed to May and with it, time to contemplate the planting of gardens and crops that will provide a future harvest. It is both the mixture of past memories and future promise that makes May so fitting a month in which to honour mothers.
The African adage “It takes a village to raise a child” is one which reminds us that our immediate family is one circle in a greater series of concentric circles that spread out across the globe. As village people, and I am not talking about the disco group, we sometimes take the most important person in the village for granted, that person being Mom.
I have three brothers, all younger, and now as a father of three sons, I am humbled at the feat of how my mom successfully managed to get the four of us, all within five years of age, out the door for various events such as church, doctor appointments, or going for groceries. If I recall correctly, it was most likely akin to herding cats.
I fondly recall the time when Mom took all four of us to see Superman II in the theatre. We were so excited, flying around the house with blankets clothes-pinned around our necks, the din approaching the level of a low flying jet. Running a bit late in rounding us up and getting us loaded into the station wagon, there were not five seats together in the theatre. Undefeated and undeterred, my mother was going to have her two hours of peace so she found four single seats near each other and got us each settled in as the opening credits commenced. What I recollect most however, is that she brought each of us small popcorn and a pop and reassured us that although she was not sitting with us, she was not too far away. Superman took to the sky while Supermom took to her seat.
Today, my brothers and I live in four different provinces. We do not get to see each other very often. That movie theatre experience is for me symbolic, for no matter how far apart we may now live, and despite how infrequently we get to go back to our village to visit our mom, she is truly a meaningful and powerful presence in our lives. Her selflessness in putting our needs and well-being first reminds me how I am called and inspired to do the same for my children.
Tomorrow is Mother’s Day, a day dedicated to honour all mothers. We honour our grandmothers, our mother-in-law, our step-mother, our adoptive and foster mothers; all those who have touched our life with a gardener’s hand. May we all take time to acknowledge value and cherish those women in our lives who have both nurtured and inspired us. So on behalf of every mother’s child – thanks Mom for being our beacon of light! Happy Mother’s Day!
Tim Cusack is an educator, writer, and member of the naval reserve.
