Happy Mothers Day!

Hope all of you mothers are having a grand day.


A few years ago when I still lived in Chicago in Obama territory I learned a good lesson in what mothering is all about. A young man in my parish church collected needy souls. He seemed to have a particular talent for actually helping recovering alcoholics recover. They were like his family. He took them about in small groups to the liquor stores, bars, and cocktails lounges in the area. Agreements were made. Whenever one of his little family showed up to make a purchase, someone at the store, bar, or cocktail lounge would call him. He'd stop whatever he was doing, usually reading a theological tome while sneezing from a multitude of allergies, and head for the store, bar, or cocktail lounge. He'd have a chat with the recovering alcoholic that would prevent a lapse, thank the person who had sent out the SOS, and then he and the-alcoholic-who-had-not-lapsed would go bowling. His own mother disapproved of his association with people who would never "make" the society pages of the Chicago Tribune. His "family," quite a large family actually, loved him.


On a Mothers Day one year, the priest asked all the mothers to stand. Our church seated 1200, and usually it was filled, so there were lots of women who were mothers. They stood. But the young man stood, too. He knew he was an excellent mother. Some parishioners giggled; his mother tried to push him down into his seat in the pew. That moment was talked about. Somehow, I was lucky enough to be one of the few who didn't giggle because I was one of the few who knew he was one of the best mothers ever.


He died a couple of years later. The church was packed for his funeral. To his mother's shame,
the pastor gave a great eulogy. He made a point of saying our parish community and our community had lost a great mother. And so we had.