Rice, Rooftops, and a Mother’s Love

On a mother’s love
“But I’m scared,” cried baby bird.

“I know,” replied mama, hugging her closer. “I know.”

Thoughts while making

“But what do you want to *do*?”

I was college junior when my mom asked.

“Walk,” I said. “I just want to walk.”

“What do you mean you ‘want to walk’?”

“Just that: I want to walk.”

“Where?” she pressed. “Where do you want to go?”

“It doesn’t matter,” I replied. “I just want to walk.”

Admittedly, dropping out of college to walk may not have been the best life choice.

But, at the time, there was nothing else I wanted as badly.

And talking me out of the idea was not going to be easy.

I’ve often wondered what my mom (and dad) thought about me during those years in my 20s…

…when I lived on couches and under stairs,
slept on rooftops and lived mainly on rice.

…when I studied Sanskrit and Hindi,
worked the oddest jobs,
moved north than east, west again, and repeat.

I did not appear to be on any particular track, definitely not a fast one.

So, after years of wondering, I finally asked my mom.

“What were you guys thinking back then?”

Without pause, she said: “We knew you were finding your way.”

And that is my mom. And that is why I love her so.

From the time I was a kid, she’s encouraged me to be, well, me.

She offered endless space for me to find my own voice. And modeled how to use it for good.

She’s shown me that it’s okay to draw outside the lines if that’s what I truly want to do.

My mom just turned 81. She’s a brilliant writer, and an incredible artist of gardens and quilts and words that will make you laugh and cry.

Her greatest gift, however, may be her endless capacity to love.

Her heart is a superpower and with it she continues to help more people than I could ever imagine find their way with love and support and encouragement and inspiration.

“How about,” she proposed way back then, “you finish college and then if you still want to walk, you can?”

What motherly superpower do you most appreciate?