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MY TAKE

Mother's Day

By MARK McGEE
Posted 5/13/23

Back in the day when you received the Eagle Scout award at a Boy Scout Court of Honor you were given a pin to honor your mother.

Without a mother’s influence and support it is difficult to …

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MY TAKE

Mother's Day

Posted

Back in the day when you received the Eagle Scout award at a Boy Scout Court of Honor you were given a pin to honor your mother.

Without a mother’s influence and support it is difficult to reach that top level of Scouting and the pin recognizes this. I understand now they have pins for fathers, grandparents and even mentors. But, in my case, the pin for my mother was fitting.

I have always appreciated that she and my father pretty much let me live my life without putting a great deal of pressure on me to do one thing or another. Whatever I was interested in at the time they supported.

But when dealing with my academics or even my athletics my mother was the one who pushed me to succeed.

As those of you who know her will attest to, she has reveled in my successes. She was also there for my failures as well.

I have put her through some challenging times beginning with the first time I drew a breath. No one is certain how long she carried me, but it was longer than nine months. I weighed 10 ½ pounds and I think I held the record for the longest baby ever born at Bedford County Hospital at 24 inches.

Twelve years ago, I was given a 10 percent or less chance of being here to write this column. She was at the hospital day and night for eight weeks supporting me. She shed a lot of tears.

Mother is a worrier. She worries if something is going wrong in my life. She worries about my health which in the last two years has included a successful neurosurgical procedure as well as the timely removal of a cancerous polyp in my colon. She worries when I travel somewhere, no matter how short the trip is. In addition to worrying she has said a lot of prayers for me.

We have always talked with each other, but in the past few weeks we have spoken more about the past – the good and the bad. I have gained more insight into a woman I thought I knew. As a result, I am more convinced that much of what I have become Is a direct result of her influence.

My mother has been dealing with a lot of issues over the past few months. My father, her husband, for just a few weeks shy of 70 years, passed away in November. She continues to grieve his loss and always will. Her health has been a challenge as well, but she still plugs along. Most people marvel at how she is able to get around despite her aches and pains.

Those she comes in contact with talk about how great a person she is and how much she means to them. I appreciate that and I agree she is special.

Despite her struggles she never fails to tell me, at least once each day, that she loves me. I love you too, mother. Happy Mother’s Day!