Barbara

Yesterday was a special day: the 67th birthday of an extraordinary woman--the woman whom I love and admire the most in the whole wide world! In honor of the occasion, here are a few words about my beloved mother.

B - bold. Mother views most of life in black and white and has a courageous attitude about dealing with it. When she decides to act, she does it quickly and does not give in to fear (or laziness or anything else that might slow her down!). :)

A - astonishing. I've written before about how highly I respect her for the way she raised me and poured herself out for her family (as well as in other spheres of influence and service). I am astonished at how much she accomplished and how well she did it.

R - righteous. Mother lived a life of virtue...is still living it, as a matter of fact! :) Her life-long heart's desire has been to follow God and live in a way that is pleasing to Him.

B - beautiful. She defined true beauty for me by her eagerness to be a lady--focused most of all on beauty of the heart which then spilled over to the kind of beauty which shows itself primarily in smile lines. She taught me by her example that people won't remember you by your amazing hair color or the half hour you spent applying your perfect makeup, but they will remember your smile and your love. :)

A - available. No matter what she's doing when I knock on her door or call her on the telephone, Mother drops everything and makes me feel like she has nothing better in the world than attending to my needs and wants. She sets a high standard in this area--an area in which I seriously need to grow.

R - reflective. Mother is an introvert and needs time away from people to be still and reflect; I think she passed this characteristic down to me! Unfortunately for her, this time of reflection often seems to come in the middle of the night when she can't sleep but lies awake mulling over the events of the day or concerns that are pressing. Unfortunately for me, her name doesn't contain a "U" because if it did, I would use the word "uncomplaining" for that is what she is. Even when she's awake for several hours in the night, she'll keep a positive attitude about it and perhaps cheerfully announce the next day, "Well, I got caught up on my devotional reading--all three daily books that I'm using--in the middle of the night!" And here I was all ready to complain that Tobin got me out of bed so early at 6:15 a.m. Gulp...I think I'll keep that to myself. :)

A - amazing. Mother amazes me, and the fact that God placed me in her family to be her daughter is yet another evidence of His amazing grace.

And now, a few pictures. Of course, I've shared many pictures of my mother in this blog previously; but for this post, I reached back into my picture archives of 2006, before I started blogging, and found these treasures...

~ Mother watching a baptism at a local river
~ Mother and Josiah watching the ground being leveled before my parents' carport was put up...I'm constantly grateful for how involved my mother is with my sons...she is quick to include them when various interesting things are happening around here, and she is patient enough to explain what is going on and answer their questions, too

~ Mother raking leaves on a beautiful fall day...I don't know anyone at all who shows more love in the area of acts of service than she does

~ in Virginia Beach when we stayed in a beachside hotel to attend a conference

~ having fun with the boys on Christmas morning...she is quick to offer her lap for them to sit on or her arms for them to jump into...I hope they give her at least a fraction of the joy she gives to them

All that is left to say is that I love you very much, Mother; and I'm unspeakably blessed to be your girl.