JENNIFER FLANDERSFamily Matters

My husband has been reading “Lord of the Rings” to our family this spring. We love J.R.R. Tolkien. He was such a brilliant writer, anc there are many, many times during the course of his story that my husband gets choked up even reading it.

Whenever that happens, I cry, too. Our older children swallow back lumps in their throats, as well, while the little ones prick up their ears and puzzle over what part of the tale could have moved the rest of the family to tears.

One thing I appreciate about Tolkien is his grasp of language and his obvious love for poetry. Both “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” are sprinkled liberally with rhymes, verses and songs that Tolkien composed himself. My husband confesses to have skimmed past those parts when he devoured the books as a young boy, but he humors me by reading every word of them now with as lilting a cadence as he can muster.

I’m certainly no Tolkien, but I share his love for poetry and have myself dabbled for years in composing original verses and songs, Since Mother’s Day is Sunday, I thought this would be a fitting time to insert one of my own poems into this weekly column. If you’re not a fan of rhymed verse, you have my permission to skip to the end.

WHY GOD MADE MOTHERS

For giving birth — as moms do best,

For nursing babies at her breast,

For singing lullabies at night,

For soothing fears and hugging tight,

For wiping teardrops from my eye

And sympathizing when I cry

While kissing boo-boos on my knee,

For bringing out the best in me,

For teaching me to tie a lace,

For using spit to clean my face,

For rocking me upon her lap

Cajoling me to take my nap,

For baking cookies by the batch,

For making sure the doors are latched

At night before she goes to bed,

For placing cold rags on my head

Whenever I am feeling sick

And fetching throw-up buckets, quick!

For bringing me “just one more” drink,

For understanding how I think,

For daily lifting me in prayer,

For combing tangles from my hair,

For teaching me to blow my nose,

For scrubbing stains out of my clothes,

For reading stacks of picture books,

For complimenting my good looks

And calling me endearing names,

For driving me to football games,

For watching o’er me as I play,

Correcting when I disobey,

For letting me help wash the dishes

After dinner — so delicious,

Coaxing me to eat green beans,

For being patient in my teens,

For measuring how fast I grow,

For holding on, for letting go,

For all the many things you do,

I’m grateful, Mom, God gave me you.

It’s interesting how many of the books my husband loved most dearly as a child (and shares most enthusiastically as a parent, including “Lord of the Rings,” center around an orphaned protagonist. Although Doug was blessed to have had a very attentive adoptive mom, he never knew his biological mother and keenly felt her absence during his formative years.

I know Mother’s Day is difficult for a lot of people: People whose mothers are no longer with them. People who never knew a mother at all.

People who’d like to be mothers themselves, but for whatever reason remain childless.

But the fact is, if you are alive today, it is because you had a mother who carried you in her womb and chose for you the gift of life, and you can acknowledge and appreciate her for doing so.

If you are so fortunate to have a mother still living and involved in your life, you can (and should) tell her how much you appreciate everything she has done for you — every sacrifice she’s made, every meal she’s prepared, every prayer she’s prayed, et cetera, et cetera.

And if your mother has already passed, you can honor her memory by living the kind of life that should make any mother proud: one steeped in love, marked by gratitude and girded with integrity.

Jennifer Flanders counts herself blessed to have been raised by the woman described in the poem above and is happy to report that her mother is still alive and well today. To read more of Jennifer’s thoughts (or her poetry!), visit http://lovinglifeathome.com.