Thanks, mom

I’d be nothing without my mom.

I live almost a thousand miles from mom and I don’t get to see her as often as I’d prefer, but we talk and I occasionally write a letter or note. She responds and I love reading those letters and notes.

A couple of weeks ago, I took off to see my mom. It was a quick trip down and back in about two days. Mom still lives in the house where we all grew up. When I was home, I got to sleep in my old bedroom for the first time in a couple of years. On the morning I was to leave, I texted her that I was excited to come and visit,

Can’t believe I am going to go to sleep in the house where I grew up – can’t wait to see you. Love Clay

and she responded with,

The corner room you and Robert painted ORANGE. It’s still showing on the screen.

Yeah, she let me paint my bedroom orange. I don’t know what I was thinking or why I thought orange was a good color for my bedroom, but she let me paint the walls orange. It stayed orange until a few years later when I left for college, and when I came back it wasn’t orange anymore.

April 2017 – mom and her three sons…

My mom let me do all sorts of things that taught me lessons that her words or my ears would not allow.

She let me make the mistakes that she knew would hurt, but the experience would help me grow.

When I pulled into the driveway at 1:45 in the morning, she was up waiting. It was wonderful to see her. I gave her a big hug and we sat down to talk. An hour later, I had to excuse myself and go to bed, but if I could’ve stayed awake, we would’ve talked until the sun rose.

My brother took the photo above Saturday morning. It was great to see her and to see my two brothers. We celebrated her birthday Friday night and on Saturday morning my brothers came over and we all went for coffee before David had to go to work- that’s when the photo was snapped. Warren and I spent the rest of the day together and I gave my mom a BIG hug before I left Saturday afternoon.

It was a good trip and I said thanks many times when I was there. I even said I’m sorry, too – because I know there were times when she was so mad she could scream. But she didn’t, she let me make my choices, knowing I’d have to live with them and learn from them. For the most part, I have.

So, Happy Mother’s Day, mom. Painting my room orange was one of many the things my mom let slide that made me who I am today. Thanks mom, I’d be nothing without you.

Today is gonna be a great. It’s Mother’s Day and I’ll be serving my wife, the mother of my kids, in the yard and helping my daughter cook dinner. Yep, it’s gonna be a great day, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, one special day at a time.

What did your mother ‘let’ you do that you never forgot?

The three of us with Grandmother Watkins, my dad’s mother, and my mom at Matagorda Beach – spring 1965

6 thoughts on “Thanks, mom

  1. What a cool mom. Letting you paint your room orange. What harm is there in that really? She chose to choose her battles; that apparently was not one of them. Good parenting.

    I can’t really think of anything off the top of my head that my mom “let” me do, except cooking and baking. We had many experimental things at our house. My mom didn’t really like to cook so I guess she figured as long as she didn’t have to cook it, we’d eat it.

    Have a great day. Thanks for sharing the photos.

    Patricia

    1. Patricia – I am so sorry, I just realized I had not replied to your comment. Oh my! The orange has long since been covered up. I changed rooms after my freshman year in college and it was painted then. It’s been the guest room since we all moved away. I have to remember to ‘let’ O and W do things to stretch their wings and learn to fly, safely, before they fly for good. Have a GREAT WEEKEND.

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