Six lessons I learned from Mom

It took me until about age 24 to not roll my eyes when Mom offered unsolicited advice or an opinion. As the oldest and only girl in my family (I have three younger brothers), I believed the world centered around me. And it didn’t help that my late dad let me believe it, too. 

Despite my eye rolling and self-centered teen years (OK, into my 20s), Mom has always been there giving me advice and subtle hints. She continues to be there. In honor of Mother’s Day. Here are six of many things I’ve learned from her along the way.

1. Live life with a servant heart. I watched my mom work 11-hour days at the family day care center while also raising four kids and still finding time to be involved in numerous community organizations, cook and take dinner to sick or grieving friends and be active in our church.  Through the years, I’ve learned that living with a servant heart never gets old.

2. Watch the weather! My mom is my personal weather forecaster and meteorologist. Rain, sleet, fog, or snow – be prepared. If you think the media overreact to impending bad weather, you should meet my mom. Be prepared or better yet, my mom would prefer we all just stay home safe, dry and warm.

3. Suck it up if you don’t feel well. Don’t even try to tell Mom you’re feeling too ill to go to church or a meeting or work. You better suck it up. And, don’t just show up, give 100 percent while you’re there. If you stay out too late, and are tired, that’s too bad, suck it up. Unless of course, bad weather is on the way.  

4. Clothes matter.  Dress for the occasion. Mom didn’t make us dress in our Sunday best every time we left the house, but if you leave the house, you better look presentable. I lost track the number of times I heard, “You're not wearing that are you?” I haven’t asked her opinion on wearing my CoolRevolution PJs to the grocery. Pretty sure, though, she may not approve of sleepwear in public. Shhh.

5. Family first. I know this sounds like a cliché, but my mom is the queen of putting family first. From the simple things like family dinner every Sunday to going all out for holiday traditions. Mom’s the kind of person who will meet you at the ER in the middle of the night when her first grandchild has a fever of 102 and she’ll stop what she’s doing to come help lay new wood floors the week before you host that same grandkid’s high school graduation.  Thanks to her, I try to make my family my number one priority, and I have never regretted it for one minute.

6.  Surround yourself with good friends. I love this one!  I simply do not know what I would do without my dear girlfriends who are there for my every low and my every high. Maintaining friendships isn’t easy. But thanks to my mom, it’s a part of me that I will never change.

Happy Mother's Day!