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May 7, 2019

Lessons I Learned From My Mom | Pennsylvania Wedding and Lifestyle Photographer

With Mother’s Day right around the corner I’ve been thinking about my mom a lot. It’s become a bittersweet holiday for me because I miss her so much, but I’m also so grateful for 22 years of memories with her. The first year after she was gone I did everything in my power to avoid the day completely. This year I’m focusing on all the wonderful lessons she taught me instead.

  1. Patience. Patience. Patience.
    I’ve truly never met anyone as patient as my mother. She raised and home-schooled 6 kids (and we were all a handful, let me tell you!) and I can count on one hand the amount of times I remember her losing her cool with us. It came so naturally to her. This is unfortunately NOTTTT a trait she passed on to me – I got more of my dad in that area.

  2. Forgiveness.
    I feel like I could write a book on just this point alone. My mom was the queen of forgiveness. No matter who it was or what they did to her she forgave over and over and over. Anytime I wanted to hold on to something someone had done to me she’d remind me of all the times I had been forgiven. She’d tell me how Jesus told us to forgive people for doing the exact same offense 70×7 times.

  3. Laughter is truly the best medicine.
    So many of my favorite memories of my mom are filled with her big smile and her laughter. There were so many times that someone would say something *slightly* funny and she’d still be cracking up about it 30 minutes later. She was just so full of laughter all the time.

  4. All things, good + bad, contain some type of blessing in them.
    My mom was known for being able to find the best in any situation. At her funeral so many people talked about how my mom’s favorite phrase was “What a Blessing”.

    You got in a car accident? Well “What a Blessing” that you weren’t more injured!
    No extra money this month? “What a Blessing” that we could at least pay all of our bills!
    House isn’t perfect? “What a Blessing” that we at least have a roof over our head.
    Your dryer broke? “What a Blessing” that we’ve been having such great weather so you can hang your laundry out to dry.

    She could always find the silver lining no matter how tough the situation.

  5. Hospitality.
    My mom had an open door policy to anyone and everyone. Every holiday she would ask around for people who didn’t have a place to go and she would fill our house with them. Sometimes it was close family friends and some times it was the “outcasts”. She’d fill the hearts with holiday cheer and their bellies with food so that they had a place to call “home” even if it was just for a day and even if we didn’t have that much to go around.
    I didn’t always appreciate what she was doing as a kid, but opening our heart and home to others, regardless of their status, is something that I now try to implement in our own home.

She wasn’t a perfect person but she tried her very best. I’m so thankful for these lessons and so many more that she left behind with us. Happy Mother’s Day in Heaven Momma. You’re missed so much.

 

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