Word to Your Mother.

Tomorrow is Mother's Day and I've been rushing around since early afternoon getting ready to host my family for lunch tomorrow. Off and on I've paused to catch up with the news of the world (:ahem: facebook), and just now stopped for a longer minute on an NPR story that featured 6-word stories to honor moms.

Maybe I didn't think hard enough, but this one came almost immediately to my mind, and I feel it fits perfectly for mine:

"I know you tried your best."

It has positive and negative connotations to it, just as our relationship has had equal moments of both.

When we were little girls, she sewed all our clothes herself, and often stitched tiny, matching outfits for our Barbies. She made elaborate cakes for our Birthdays and volunteered in our elementary school classrooms.  She remained a stay-at-home mom long after we needed her to be home.

As we got older, she struggled with how to deal with teenage daughters. (Who wouldn't?) And she made some life-altering mistakes with both of us. Most parents probably do. I know this is a big reason why I chose not to be one.

Once we both had left home for college, she tried to make sense of what she was meant to do, if it was no longer to raise children. She strives still today to find her meaning, and her inability to do so has manifested in some troubling habits. Ones that affect her health and affect her connections with everyone in our family. It is tough to be powerless as she searches to find her way back to mental and physical wellness. Despite the pain and alienation she's created, I still love her. Of course. And, I know she tries her best.