WITH MY MOMMY, SPC~September, Week 4

She is my mother, my friend, my voice of reason, my shoulder and ear when I am in need, and my source of inspiration to help me find the inner calm that she possesses.

There are many times I think I could not possibly be her child. She is the most gentle, kind, and soft-spoken woman I think I have ever known. Her voice is soothing, quite lovely. Should she ever be tempted to raise it in anger, it is still but a slight notch above her normal tone. She has the most impeccable manners. Proper etiquette was a mainstay of her upbringing, and I would suspect she wonders how it was lost on me. ::smile::

She refers to me as her "ornery" daughter. Example. During her last hospital stay, I arrived to take her home. I was helping her get dressed after the nurse had removed the round, adhesive patches with the metal tips in the center that heart monitors connect to. While the nurse was preparing to remove Mom's IV, I noticed there was one of those patches still stuck on her chest. I asked the nurse if I could remove it, and she said I could...that she had not realized she had missed one. I said, "It's okay, I'll just take it off. That way I won't be tempted to start calling her Triple Nipple." Mom immediately told the laughing nurse that I was ornery. Uh huh. I am. And Mom knows she loves it. I like to make Mom laugh. She has the most precious giggle. If I time my stealth move just perfectly, I can reach under her chin and tickle her. Ohhhh, how I love the nonstop high-pitched giggle that causes. And when I am walking behind her, I love to pinch her bottom. She used to leap when I did it and tell me to stop it. Now, she is used to it and keeps on walking.

She is 5' 2", and I am 5' 8", and I love to wear heels. So, when we are together, she almost fits under my arm. I hug her lots and call her my little pocket parent.

She is a very, very strong woman. She has dealt with some horrendously tragic events during her life, but she has that ability to accept things as they are. The pain of those things never completely goes away, but she has made peace with them.

My mother. I think I will keep her. In my pocket. ::grin::


(The SELF-PORTRAIT CHALLENGE theme for September is ‘with someone‘ month - that means you must include someone else in your self portrait. Someone meaningful to your life or to the moment or to a specific event that you wish to document. Guidelines: 1. each week in the month use a different person in your self portait. 2. either talk about that person or illustrate in the photograph why you have included them and how they are meaningful.)