One of my biggest regrets in life is that I never got to know my mother as a person.
She was more than my mom, she was a person who had hopes and dreams, she had moments of frustration and faced disappointments, she had a whole entire life before I was born. But I had only ever viewed her as my Mother. I think as a child it's difficult to see beyond that. It wasn't until I became a mother myself that I viewed her in a different light, but by then it was too late.
When I look at the picture above I no longer only see my mom playing with me in the water, I see a young woman who had a whole life beyond me. I thought I would have all the time in the world to ask her my questions and now, more than ever, I wish I knew that woman.
I work hard to keep her alive by telling my boys stories about her and what she was like—sharing my memories with them. But I fear I'm losing her. Memories fade.
Which is why I think this could be the most important gift you give to your mother or receive yourself. I was offered a copy for free and when received it, I cried while reading the questions. So many were ones I wish I had the chance to ask my own mom.
It's a journal that delves into specific aspects of a mother's life—from motherhood, family, and children, to life, love, relationships and what it is like to be you. Things like:
What are your favourite family celebrations or traditions and how did they get started?
What have been some of your most embarrassing moments and how did you react?
Who makes you laugh and what did you laugh about?
What do you value most about your children?
What did you put off until "someday" that you wish you hadn't?
They're all questions I wish I could have asked my mom but I can't, so I'll be answering them for my kids and some day when they are grown and have questions, they'll have answers—whether I'm here or not.
It's my Mother's Day gift to them.
And to me.
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