monday's mulling: mom

Today would be my mom's 94th birthday. She died in 2020, not from COVID but from complications from Alzheimers. 

This photo makes me smile for so many reasons. It was taken for her church "yearbook," if you will. The ironic part of this is that when she was a little, feisty girl Mom hated going to church. Her mom was a devout Catholic and she took her children to church every Sunday. No getting out of it. Mom didn't like the incense, she had lots of questions about things to which the answer was "Because this is how we practice the faith," and she didn't like wearing hats. Fast forward to 2015. Mom was in assisted living and my brother and sister-in-law started taking her to church. The Catholic church. And mom loved going to church. 

When she died, the COVID restrictions on attending church were lifting. She had a funeral mass, the first one at her church after the diocese said funeral masses were allowed. Families could sit together, all other visitors had to sit 5 feet apart and in every other pew, still had to wear masks, and singing wasn't allowed. Only family was allowed at the gravesite service.

The sweater she's wearing in the photo was her favorite piece of clothing. She wore it at least three times a week. She wasn't allowed to wear jewelry in assisted living so for this photograph she wore her favorite turquoise necklace and was sad when we told her she wasn't allowed to have it in her room. We told her that it might get stolen if she kept it in her room and she reluctantly let me take it home to keep it safe.

 

So many memories...

One of the most impressive ones that sticks with me is during my dad's 35 year Sears career, the family moved to 7 different cities. Our last move was to Dayton in 1973. For each move, Mom unpacked the boxes, set up the new house, and got dinner on the table in record time. She loved a comfortable, organized home that was a base and welcoming place for family and friends. Such a gracious and kind lady.