Five Minutes of Grateful

Linking up with Five Minute Friday today, and here's the deal-

Tell your inner critic to hush, then write for 5 minutes flat for pure unedited love of the written word. Then hop over to the party hosted by Lisa Jo Baker, and add your link to the list. Be sure and leave a comment for the writer who linked before you, because that's the neighborly thing to do.

Today's prompt-grateful

I was thinking this morning about the mothers in my family. About how grateful I am for knowing them.  How each one brings something into my life that makes me want to be a better woman-mother-sister-daughter-friend. 

My mom. The person who has always been right there. In the kitchen. Sitting on the side of my bed. At the other end of the phone. In my head. There is something to be said about a mother who is always there. The sureness of her seeps into my soul and cements itself there. I feel safe.  

My mother-in-law. She'll send me a card this week telling me I'm wonderful, because that's how she rolls. She encourages me. Makes me believe I'm the person she says I am. A mom who appreciates the way I've mothered my daughters, and who says so. I feel invincible.

My big sister. A heart as wide as two arms can stretch. Then stretch a little wider. Open and loving. Funny. Easy. The one I can tell what's in the deepest part of my heart and know she won't judge. With her I'm me. I feel real.

My little sister. Juggling approximately 100 balls. Smart. Accomplished. My partner in crime when I was small, a tiny treasure that remains permanently lodged in my heart. She came to motherhood late in life, and helps me remember all the crazy joy that fills the growing years. I feel wonder.

Hubs sister. My sister in law. Calm and thoughtful. Funny. We are both thinkers, readers, writers in our own way. She's intentional, deliberate in the raising of her sons. I feel kinship.

Hubs brother's wife. My sister in law. A mother who has walked through the fire. Who with grace and quiet strength, faced what no parent dares allow even a momentary stay in the furthest reaches of their consciousness. A mother whose faith has been tested in the deep, yet who remains afloat. Who in spite of, sometimes even because of, that fire can still say God is good. I feel peace. 

"No language can express the power, beauty, heroism, and majesty of a mother's love." Edwin Chapin

Happy Mother's Day to the women who have added so much to my life. 

And to all mothers everywhere.