Remain calm. Breathe deep. Relax.

   Being excited at this juncture serves no real purpose and is, in fact, a waste of energy given the fact it will not change things at this point in time.

    Funny….those words are as useless in print as they are in person right now. There is absolutely no way that any of us can calm down…at least not those of us who have heard the news.

    It seems as though Jen will be coming home.

    The news has spread faster than wildfire through the ranks of friends and family. She has been missed much more than she can ever imagine.  The constant ringing of the phone is only momentarily drowned out by kids going in and out of the house as plans are made for her return.

   If this gets any bigger, it may become a holiday in itself.

    Calm?

    Yeah….right. What’s that??

arkmomy

   It would seem that the season is against me at times.

    This time last year, the refrigerator broke….this year, the oven. It is cold outside. I miss my daughter. Money is tight and it seems as though I will never finish the shopping.

    It would be enough to make one begin to dread the holidays except for two little words that keep me going….’to mom’.

    I’ve been the neighborhood mom to about a dozen kids over the past ten years. They hang out here, eat here, do their homework here, play video games, and even help clean. They call me ‘mom’ even though I didn’t give birth to them. They’ve always said that it stands for ‘my other mother’ and I’m content with that.

    They are good kids even though they stumble sometimes. I love them as much as the two who are mine by nature. After all, I’ve watched most of them grow from grade-school to young adulthood.

     Because they are kids and really don’t have money, our holiday celebrations usually consist of meals and spending time together. They celebrate with their real families and then come here to eat again and hang out. Gifts are usually small so as not to overshadow anything provided by their real families.

    This year was different.  

     It was not expected. After all, as teens, I’d expect them to get things for one another…but not for me. It is okay…friends are important to teens. I know this and am not bothered by it.

    Then last sunday happened.

     A knock at the front door brought with it the arrival of some of the kids. The knock is only a formality…they know they are expected to come right in and they always do so. The kids came back to where I was cleaning to give me packages….gifts for me.

     With more than a little surprise, I accepted the packages in exchange for hugs. Holding these small packages in my hands, I saw the words that brought happy tears to my eyes….

     ‘to mom’

     Now, I know that they call me Mom and have for years….but this is different. This time, it is in writing. It is a validation of sorts…an honor bestowed upon me by these kids who have grown to love me as much as I love them.

     I’ve been instructed that I am not to open the packages until Christmas…but it doesn’t matter. Contents are not important….it could be a pack of gum or a diamond ring…it does not change the fact that the real gift is right there on the outside of the paper….written in black magic marker….’to mom’.

    Two words that are enough to ease the worry caused by missing my daughter and appliances that fail just when I need them most. Two words that are enough to warm even the coldest day. This is what matters most to me.

 arkmomy

   I saw an old friend today.

   Okay, honestly, I pretty much ordered him to come over since we’d not seen him in ages and have been really missing him.

   Its not what you might think. He is one of my ‘kids’…the ones that hang out here all the time. He’s been quite busy lately with family things and hasn’t been able to make it over here.

   There are some people who brighten our lives just because they are in it…this kid is one of them.

   He’s a quiet sort. Intelligent, funny, helpful around the house…and just generally very good company. True, he’s pretty much grown, but he remains as much one of my kids to me as the ones that actually live here.

   Having met his real Mom, its easy to see where he comes by his nature. She is one of those good Moms…the ones who take time with their kids and let them know just how blessed they feel to have them around.

   Everybody talks about how parenting is the hardest job on the planet. It is time-consuming, sometimes difficult, occasionally heartbreaking, and exasperating. While it is certainly all of those things on occasion, I wouldn’t say that its the hardest thing that I’ve ever done. Any hardship is certainly outweighed by the benefits. After all, when you end up with kids like these that I know, the time and effort seem minimal in comparison to the result.

   At any rate, I’ve missed this young man….Jon has missed him.

   So, if you’ll excuse us for a weekend…we have some catching up to do.

arkmomy