Friday, October 19, 2012

ruth's eighty first birthday!




this is a special day for me. more special even than most. you see my mum - ruth - is celebrating her eighty first birthday today.

she doesn't quite match the image of eighty one that i and perhaps you might see in your mind's eye.

today, yes on her birthday, she's flying to england for the weekend to visit with adoring good friends, do some shopping and to travel around to see some special places.

what she'll return to is her role as a walker at the local dog shelter, a supporter of the local donkey sanctuary, a preparer of gift baskets used to raise money for the huntington's foundation, loving tenderer of her garden, bottler of all sorts of awesome preserves (especially pickled beets which i could eat 'till i was sick) friend to many, sister in law to her closest friend margaret, gramma to alan, dawson and lexie, and of course mum to myself and my brother david.

my mum is (among many other things) well read, well movied, well musicked,
thoughtful, reflective, sensitive, and i would underscore several times - driven!

there's lots more about her but really, you get my drift. she's not sitting around any more than she has to. 
actually i don't think she knows how!

i'm very grateful for my mum - she brought me into this world at great personal effort - a couple of days of work . . . . . and stuck with me from then on, through thick and thin.

have you had a "difficult" child? then you know what ruth dealt with while pursuing a career, and managing the rest of her not entirely easy life!!!

nope, it's not been easy but then i think that my mum would ask "why should it be?" and then go after whatever's next in her line of sight.

much of what i value in myself has its roots in my mum. either she showed me how to be or i figured it out by standing on her shoulders and having a look-see.

i love you mum, no more this day than any other but this one is special for the most obvious of reasons!


8 comments:

Jinksy said...

Wonderful tribute to an obviously wonderful person. Happy Birthday, Mum!

ellen abbott said...

long live the mum!

The Weaver of Grass said...

What a fine tribute to a wonderful mum Steven - well done to you for posting it.

hope said...

Happy Birthday Mum!

Cool thing about working with senior citizens...my opinion of "old" has evolved over the past 19 years with them. Those like your Mum seem younger than my Grandma was at 65...cause they won't sit still!

Wishing her many more happy days!

Lisa said...

Just found your blog - happy birthday to your mom!

steven said...

awwwww my lovely bloggy friends thankyou . . . my mum will have read your comments and feel especially special!! lisa welcome all the way from the gorgeous west coast which one day i hope to visit . . . steven

Pauline said...

Happy (belated) birthday to your Mum and a pat on your back for such a delightful tribute any mother would be proud to read :)

Valerianna said...

I always love your yearly tribute to your Mum on her birthday, I'm glad she's still vibrant and off to England for an adventure! Her birthday is two days after my own, a fellow Libra!