Ode to Mothers!!!

>BEING A MOTHER....
>
>After 17 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to
>take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She
>said, 'I love you, but I know this other woman loves
>you and would love to spend some time with you.'
>* * *
>The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit
>was my MOTHER, who has been alone for 20 years,
>but the demands of my work and my two boys had
>made it possible to visit her only occasionally.
>* * *
>That night I called to invite her to go out for
>dinner and a movie.
>* * *
>'What's wrong, aren't you well,' she asked?
>* * *
>My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a
>late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign
>of bad news.
>* * *
>'I thought it would be pleasant to spend some
>time with you,' I responded. 'Just the two of us.'
>She thought about it for a moment, and then said,
>'I would like that very much..'
>* * *
>That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick
>her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her
>house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous
>about our date. She waited in the door. She had curled her hair and was wearing the
>dress that she had worn to celebrate her last
>birthday on November 19th.
>* * *
>She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an
>angel's. 'I told my friends that I was going to go
>out with my son, and they were impressed,' she said,
>as she got into that new white van. 'They can't wait to hear about our date'..
>* * *
>We went to a restaurant that, although not
>elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my
>arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat
>down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only
>read large print. Half way through the entries, I
>lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at
>me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips. 'It was I
>who used to have to read the menu when you were
>small,' she said. 'Then it's time that you relax and
>let me return the favor,' I responded.
>* * *
>During the dinner, we had an agreeable
>conversation- -nothing extraordinary but catching up
>on recent events of each other's life. We talked so
>much that we missed the movie.
>* * *
>As we arrived at her house later, she said,
>'I'll go out with you again, but only if you let me
>invite you.' I agreed.
>* * *
>'How was your dinner date ?'
>asked my wife when I got home.
>'Very nice. Much more so than I could have imagined,'
>I answered.
>* * *
>A few days later, my mother died of a massive
>heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't
>have a chance to do anything for her.
>* * *
>Some time later, I received an envelope with a
>copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place
>mother and I had dined.. An attached note said: 'I
>paid this bill in advance. I wasn't sure that I
>could be there; but nevertheless, I paid for two
>plates - one for you and the other for your wife.
>You will never know what that night meant for me.
>I love you, son..'
>* * *
>At that moment, I understood the importance of
>saying in time: 'I LOVE YOU' and to give our loved
>ones the time that they deserve.. Nothing in life is
>more important than your family. Give them the time
>they deserve, because these things cannot be put off
>till 'some other time.'
>* * *
>Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back
>to normal after you've had a baby..... somebody
>doesn't know that once you're a mother,
>'normal' is history.
>* * *
>Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by
>instinct ... somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
>* * *
>Somebody said being a mother is boring ....
>somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.
>Somebody said if you're a'good' mother,
>your child will 'turn out good'....
>somebody thinks a child comes with
>directions and a guarantee.
>* * *
>Somebody said you don't need an education to be a
>mother.... somebody never helped a fourth grader
>with his math.
>* * *
>Somebody said you can't love the second child as
>much as you love the first .... somebody doesn't
>have two children.
>* * *
>Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother
>is labor and delivery....
>somebody never watched her 'baby' get on the bus
>for the first day of kindergarten ...
>or on a plane headed for military 'boot camp.'
>* * *
>Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her
>child gets married....somebody doesn't know that
>marriage adds a new son or daughter-in- law to a
>mother's heartstrings.
>* * *
>Somebody said a mother's job is done when
>her last child leaves home......
>somebody never had grandchildren.
>* * *
>Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so
>you don't need to tell her....
>somebody isn't a mother..
>
>
>Pass this along to all the 'mothers' in your life
>and to everyone who ever had a mother. This isn't
>just about being a mother; it's about appreciating
>the people in your life while you have them....no
>matter who that person is.