Friday, February 13, 2009

Fingerprint Friday - Remembering My Mom

My fingerprint of God this week is my mom. This past Monday was her birthday. She was born on February 9, 1916, and passed away on December 20, 2003 at age 87. I've been missing her a lot this week, and would like to introduce her to you. Her name was Bertha but she hated that and always went by B.

Here she is as a little girl...



...and here with her twin sisters and their dad, my Grandpa. My mom is at left, Dorothy in the middle and Alice at right. The twins were a year and a half older than my mom.



Another sister, Marian, came along when my mom was 9. From left, Marian, Alice, Dorothy and B.



Here she is as a young adult.



Here is our family when I was 5, on a vacation in Florida.



Here she is with me in 2002. She is wearing a pin I made. :)



She is the one most responsible for my love of arts and crafts. She was always making things, and was especially talented at knitting and crocheting. She made me gorgeous sweaters all through school, and gave away hundreds of beautiful baby blankets in her lifetime. She taught me to knit when I was 6, and invited me to paint my own canvas when she was taking an oil painting class. I remember the two of us creating an Easter hat out of construction paper and plastic flowers when I was a Girl Scout. When I was 13, she started a business, a craft and yarn shop which she had for about 10 years. It was so much fun to hang out there, and we made all the different kits she had in the shop, so she could explain them in detail to the customers.

She and my dad adored their three grandsons and we had many fun trips to Illinois as they were growing up. After my dad died, she moved to Phoenix where she lived for four years, then we talked her into moving here to North Carolina the last two years of her life, and got her a nice apartment in a retirement center about 10 minutes from our house. We loved having her nearby, and being able to visit often and go out to dinner once a week.

But we could tell she didn't feel well the last year or so of her life. She walked slower and slower, didn't want to go out to dinner anymore, and stopped crocheting. Then she found a lump in her abdomen in November, 2003, and was diagnosed with ovarian cancer Thanksgiving week and had to go into a nursing home for the last month. I visited every day and we had some precious time to reflect and reminisce and to say I love you. She said that she wasn't afraid to die because my dad was waiting for her. I think she could see him. She said, "I've had a wonderful life and got to meet my beautiful great-grandchildren (5 of them). Don't grieve for me. I am at peace."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that says:

I can see the fingerprints of God
When I look at you
I can see the fingerprints of God
And I know it's true
You're a masterpiece
That all creation quietly applauds
And you're covered with the fingerprints of God

Where do you see God's fingerprints? In nature? kids? animals? They are all around us!

Thank you to Pampering Beki for hosting this each week! Everyone is welcome to join. To see how to join, as well as find links to other Fingerprint Friday posts, visit Pampering Beki's blog.

9 comments:

rosecreekcottage-carol.blogspot.com said...

What a beautiful tribute to your mom. I think what she said to you before she finished her journey to heaven was the finest gift a mother can give to her family. You are very very blessed to have had her for a mother. I SO enjoyed your post. xoxox

Shoozles said...

she is so beautiful and so are you what a sweet tribute

Beki - TheRustedChain said...

What a beautiful lady and a beautiful legacy she left!

(And those animals below are too cute.) ;-)

Rosebud Collection said...

I love the tribute to your mom..My mom was born on the 10th of Feb..
I can not tell you how much I miss her and her wonderful ways..Just loved your blog and isn't it wonderful we appreciated them and the memory they left behind..Hope I can do the same for my girls...

Jenny's Delights said...

That is an amazing Fingerprint Friday! The pictures were beautiful, and your mom seems like she was a wonderful woman!

Katherine @ Sweet Caroline's said...

Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories, and pictures of your family and special mom.

Tammy's Treasure Chest said...

This is a wonderful post! I think we are all fingerprints of God, but Moms especially. Yours was beautiful, and you look just like her.

Horse Creek Jewelry said...

It is truly amazing the life of one person and the impact they make in another person's life! Your mother is absolutely beautiful. What a sweet story..makes me think of I how much I miss and love my own parents. Thank you for this!

Malicious Intent said...

awe, I don't know how I missed this one...your mother was beautiful! Inside and out. So glad you got that special time with her, I had that with my grandmother and I miss her.
I don't have that with my mother, but I wish I did. Our relationship is very awkward and uncomfortable at best because of the damage my father has inflicted on us over the years.
Maybe one day.