My friend, Scott, has a tribute page to his mom on his website. It is beautiful and touching. And it made me stop to think about not only MY mom, who is still with me and wonderful, but also the moms of several friends, who are gone but had a very large impact on me. Unfortunately, I never met Scott's mom, but would have liked to. Knowing the kind of man Scott has become, I bet she was a phenomenal woman.
I do not think the friends I mention here will be surprised that their moms had an impact on my life or on the kind of mom I strive to be. First and foremost is Linda Ryder. She was a mother figure to so many of us. Her house and her heart was always open. She was smart and funny and very wise. I know her children miss her and I hope they know I do too. And, of course, there was Mrs. Blamble. Another very giving woman. She welcomed anyone and everyone into her home and I believe she loved all of us. She was forever the comedian too, which worked well for me, living in a home with one.
There is so much that we garner from our own mothers but I wonder if we ever think about the impact we may be having on our childrens friends. Or our friends children. There are a few others who need mentioning here even though they are still around. Cassy McElvy is one of those. She doesn't live here anymore but she was a very big piece of my life. She spoke words to me shortly after we graduated that have helped me throughout my life more than I could have imagined at the time. Patty Bentley is another. Although with Patty I'd have to say that her entire family, the Nelson clan, feels as much like family to me as my own. When you become friends with someone at the age of 2 and remain friends, I don't see how that cannot happen.
I know that, as a mom, I am constantly reminded (by my actions) of how much like my mother I am. But I hope that I have also absorbed and retained some of the good things I learned from my friends' moms. This maybe should have been written prior to Mother's Day but at least its been written.
Moms, friends who are moms, have moms, lost moms.....you ALL impact those around you! Make your impact a great one! Thanks and love to my friends whose moms had an impact on me (and so many others).
And although I may be hard-pressed to get my mom to read this, I hope she knows how much I love her and appreciate all that she does and has done.
I hope your mom does read this...(funny, my mom doesn't ever look at my blog either) Our house was always full of our friends and their friends, many of whom practically lived with us because their parents didn't care if they came home. I too had friends who's mom's had an impact on me. Great post Karey!
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