Erma Bombeck on Mother's Day

I have laughed til I cried at some of Erma Bombeck's witty remarks.  But this one is so tender-hearted....  And, it's one that is worth remembering over and over again - and passing on to our children and our children's children...


We all know that being a Mom is the hardest, most rewarding job on the face of this Earth.

"You don't love me!"
 
How many times have your kids laid that one on you?
And how many times have you, as a parent, resisted the urge to tell them how much?
Someday, when my children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates a mother, I'll tell them...

• I loved you enough to bug you about where you were going, with whom and what time you would get home.
• I loved you enough to insist you buy a bike with your own money, which we could afford, and you couldn't.
• I loved you enough to be silent and let you discover your hand picked friend was a creep.
• I loved you enough to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your bedroom, a job that would have taken me 15 minutes.
• I loved you enough to say, "Yes, you can go to Disney World on Mother's Day."
• I loved you enough to let you see anger, disappointment, disgust, and tears in my eyes.
• I loved you enough not to make excuses for your lack of respect or your bad manners.
• I loved you enough to admit that I was wrong and ask for your forgiveness.
• I loved you enough to ignore "what every other mother" did or said.
• I loved you enough to let you stumble, fall, hurt, and fail.
• I loved you enough to let you assume the responsibility for your own actions, at 6, 10, or 16.
• I loved you enough to figure you would lie about the party being chaperoned, but forgave you for it...after discovering I was right.
• I loved you enough to shove you off my lap, let go of your hand, be mute to your pleas and insensitive to your demands...so that you had to stand alone.
• I loved you enough to accept you for what you are, and not what I wanted you to be.
• But most of all, I loved you enough to say no when you hated me for it. That was the hardest part of all.

Erma Bombeck