Mum

Hello Mum.

How are you? I’m doing alright. Authrine is doing really well. The girls are coming along great as well. The two older girls did something significant recently that really was a step towards them taking responsibility for their lives. It was incredible to see, Mum and in a way it made me think of you. It made me think of all those school plays and musical recitals you attended and seeing the three children you have with Dad go from children to young adults. It’s timely to think of that and think of you, today.

I am really grateful to God for you in my life, Mum. The years of sacrifice, hard work, unstinting devotion so that your children could make it in the world is not forgotten. The tears and the prayers, having to bear with what comes with the whole children thing. Your patience is amazing, Mum and your unbounded passion for each one of us still has a profound impact on me. I consider the three daughters God has given me and the love Authrine pours into them and it makes me appreciate all the more how incredible you were with us as we were children getting an understanding of this life thing.

Watching you go through some really difficult moments in life and do your best to not let it affect us was so admirable. We saw the pain, Mum. We know it wasn’t easy at all and we got some insight into the cost on your well-being. It’s all the more reason why I am grateful that you made it through and you made it through all the better for it. Where others sought to bring you down, you really learnt to rely on Jesus and get over it – painfully and patiently – but you got over it and thrived.

It’s still something that brings delight to me that you were able to do well with your catering and allow a lot of other people to recognise what we have known for a long time – that you are a tremendous cook. (I would say that you’re the best, but you know how Authrine is … as in you’re amazing Authrine – you’re great! Put the frying pan down now, please.) Really made me so happy to see you able to get your recipes and put them in your own cookbook that sold out so well. To see you become an entrepreneur as soon as your children were old enough to look after themselves is a real inspiration to me, Mum.

I really hope you feel you’ve fulfilled a lot in your life, Mum. I hope you know that you’ve done so much for your family, the church family and your community. I hope you know that you have been a faithful example to me. Your ability to keep trusting and hoping under trying circumstances is so important to me even now, Mum. I hope you appreciate that. I hope you appreciate that your faith in God has defined a great deal of what I’m going through at the moment and I know I can go on and hold on because you keep holding on and you keep on keeping on.

Thanks Mum. For investing so much. For being such a powerful woman of prayer. For being tender and kind. For being bombastic and emotional. For being there for Dad. For being there for Ruth. For being there for David. For being there for me. Thanks for constantly reminding me that we cannot do it without God. Thanks for proving it day after day, week, after week, month after month and – as we celebrate this significant day for you – year after year.

We hope you had a great day – and we hope there are even brighter days ahead for you.

God richly bless you in all things. Love you, Mum.

(Photo by Adi Goldstein on Unsplash)

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

C. L. J. Dryden