The Special Mother

 

The Special Mother
by Erma Bombeck

Did you ever wonder how mothers of disabled children were chosen?
Somehow I visualize God hovering over the earth selecting his instruments of propagation with great care and deliberation. As He observes, He instructs His angels to make notes in a giant ledger.
"This one gets a daughter. The Patron saint will be Cecelia"
..."This one gets twins. The Patron saint will be Matthew"
"This one gets a son. The Patron saint.....give her Gerard. He's used to profanity"
Finally He passes a name to an angel and smiles. "Give her a disabled child".
The angel is curious. "Why this one God? She's so happy"
"Exactly," smiles God. "Could I give a disabled child to a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel!"
"But has she patience?" asks the angel.
"I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of sorrow and despair. Once the shock and resentment wears off, she'll handle it. I watched her today, she has that feeling of self and independence that is so necessary in a mother. You see, the child I'm going to give her has his own world. She has to make him live in her world and that's not going to be easy."
"But Lord, I don't think she even believes in you"
God smiles, "No matter, I can fix that. This one is perfect - she has just enough selfishness"
The angel gasps - "Selfishness? is that a virtue?"
God nods. "If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally she won't survive. Yes here is a woman whom I will bless with a child less than perfect. She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied. She will never take for granted a 'spoken word'. She will never consider any 'step' ordinary. When her child says "Momma" for the first time she will be present at a miracle and will know it. I will permit her to see clearly the things I see...ignorance, cruelty and prejudice...and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life because she is doing my work as surely as if she is here by my side"
"And what about her Patron saint?" asks the angel, his pen poised in mid air.
God smiles "A mirror will suffice"

1st Day of School

Logan, Jocelyn & Devin ready for their 1st day of school

well, it's that time of year again..."Back 2 School"!!!  i have counted down for this day for a while now, but i will admit it's a bittersweet feeling now that it's actually here. 

Devin Michael - 8th grade

can you believe that this is devin's LAST year of Junior High???  8th grade sure snuck up on me pretty quick.  lots of memories for devin to be made this year...this is his final year of Junior High sports, more electives to choose from, his 1st year of FFA & most of all 8th grade graduation to look forward to in the spring.  my little guy sure is growing up on me.

Devin's last "1st day" of Junior High...

Jocelyn Abigail - 2nd grade

Jocelyn began 2nd grade today, which sorta freaks me out...even though she's not technically the "baby" of the family, she's still my little ANGEL baby, she shouldn't be old enough for 2nd grade yet.  this is also jocelyn's final year at the school she is at...she will  have to move on up to Eastside Elementary next year, she is growing up too, i guess.  well, we had a FUN morning for the 1st day of school...here's what she did...i got her all dressed & ready to go to school & when i wasn't looking she poured her entire milk out onto her outfit.  she was soaked from head to toe...so, we hurried up & made a quick outfit change & still made it to school on time.  gotta love Angelman Syndrome...all i could do was laugh & say "welcome back to the chaotic school day mornings..."

Jocelyn all ready for School, after a quick wardrobe change of course :)

Logan Nathanael - 1st grade

here's my RockStar, my wild one, the baby of the family...even he's getting big too!!  time sure is flying by...way too fast if you ask me.  wasn't it just yesterday i brought this precious child home from the hospital???  well, he's a 1st grader now & boy do i feel for his teacher...she's got her hands full w/ this kid!!  (that's why we took her some nice gifts this morning...)

Logan holding one of the gifts he brought for Mrs. Dee

Logan sitting in his own desk...he was so excited about this!!

Logan has always sat at tables since Pre-K.  this is the first year to have his OWN desk, he sure did like this part of 1st grade this morning.  before i left him there i asked him if he wanted me to walk him to the cafeteria...his reply, "no mom, i got this!"  then flashed me a peace sign, in true RockStar form & yelled "later"!! yes he's growing up so so fast.

so, here we are, the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year...wow, when i was in school that seemed SO FAR away, but here it is. and my babies are growing up right before my eyes.  i could not be more proud of my kids, they are amazing, each in their own special way.  i can't wait to see what this school year has in store!!!