A Mother's Love

Is there anything more pure or powerful than a mother's love? I was meditating today and thoughts of mothers and their love drifted into my mind. Not sure if it is because my mom's health is going downhill, because I told a story about my mom yesterday (one of the ones below), or for some other reason, but I felt a need to post something about mothers. Never having been a mother (or father either for that matter), I have never experienced the love they have for their children from their perspective but I have definitely been on the receiving end. I know that my mom loves me in a million little ways every day of her life, but here are two somewhat dramatic, somewhat entertaining (and scary at the time, let me tell you) examples of her love and just two of the many reasons why I owe my life to my mom:

When I was very young...I would guess around two...my family went to the beach. I don't remember what beach, just that it was a beach (I was 2 for pete's sake, give me a break). I was fascinated by the way the ocean would lap at the shore. I would follow it out and then back in, laughing all the way. Then something very unexpected happened...I was at a point where I was closer to the surf when a larger wave then usual broke right in front of me. I was thrown off my feet and tossed around in the water like a cork. I started to be pulled out into the ocean and to take on water, coughing and crying all at the same time. Then suddenly, miraculously, two hands reached down from the heavens and lifted me back up into the life giving air. My mom had been keeping an eye on me, had seen me go down, and had sprinted into the ocean to rescue me. If not for her, I have no doubt I would not have made it.

A few years later, my mom and I were at Sears. No idea what we were there for, but, whatever it was, it was upstairs. We got on the escalator and started to ride up to the second floor. Let me pause here for a moment to say that, as a child, I was afraid of stairs. I know that I fell down the stairs at our house at least once, but whether this instilled the fear or the fear caused me to fall, I don't know. I just know that I was afraid of stairs. Now, back to our story...as we neared the end of our ride on the escalator, I noticed the jaws of death at the very top (also known as an escalator comb plate). I was scared and fascinated at the way it "ate" the stairs as they got close. I knew that I would have to jump over this terrifying thing and that timing was critical. Unfortunately, knowing and doing are two different things. I waited too long, my foot hit the comb plate and knocked me off balance causing me to fall backwards. Next thing I know, I am being eaten by this demon staircase. First the machinery ripped and ate my pants and then began to work on my flesh. Blood began to flow and I started to scream. I'm not sure what my mom did, whether she hit a stop button or just pulled me free by brute force, but I know that she saved me once again.

So, I'm sending out love and a big hug to my mom and all mothers everywhere and declaring today Appreciate-a-Mom Day. No greeting card or gift necessary, just let your mom or any mom know that they are appreciated and loved. They make the world a better place for us, so let's show them that they mean the world to us.