It has been a little over 3 years now since my mother died and I was thinking of her this afternoon as I was out in the garden. (No, it wasn’t the garden that reminded me of her…I really can’t imagine her gardening.) It was simply an idle thought of her that grew into this post…
What I remembered were the afternoons when mom would get together with her friends for an hour or so of coffee and conversation. This was almost a daily routine and we always knew where mom was if the group of 3 wasn’t meeting at our house. She was at one of their houses. I really enjoyed it when they met at our house and I had the good fortune to be present. I would hang out, trying to be inconspicuous and listen to the conversation. Fascinating! They discussed everything.
My mother definitely had an opinion about everything and she enjoyed the give and take that they participated in over their cups of coffee. The arguments ebbed and flowed and at the end of the day, all were happy about the conclusions…or no conclusion. It didn’t seem to matter.
All of this took place in the 1940’s and 50’s. Mom didn’t drive and she didn’t have a job outside the home until the late 50’s, so this meeting of the minds was her “mental floss” for each day.
Wouldn't it be nice to return to those simple times?
Well Steve back then you had Eisenhower Republicans and Kennedy Democrats. There was a lot of moderation and less hateful partisanship which is really causing an us vs. them mentality. Especially where the two groups really don't have to interact you see these lines that create ignorant presummptions that the other people are this or that. I once argued with a friend that a modern day holocaust could happen today. He thought I was foolish, a few years later we had Kosovo, and then Rawanda. If Americans don't think our country can't collapse because God loves us more than other countries, or because we are somehow superior people they are wrong. Lord have mercy should God pour out our much deserved judgement. The left and right is totally clueless in this regard.
ReplyDeleteI was touched that you were thinking of you mom, especialy just before mothers day. This evening my stepfather who is now being cared for by Whit and I (along with my mum) said goodbye to his mother, in person, for the last time in this life. It was a very emotional time for them and afterwards all I could do was reassure him he would see his mother again if not in this life then the next.
Again...well said. Moderation seems to be a thing of the past. We seem to live in a society where the watchword is "My way or the highway!".
ReplyDeleteAnd speaking of Holocausts...Darfur comes to mind.