My Mom’s wedding photo, butter molds (her mom used to mold their homemade butter), one of the thread spools is so old, it has a worn off price of 16 cents!
MY MOM, MY FRIEND!
I’ll never forget the day I heard the news I NEVER wanted to hear. We were living in Cairo when the phone rang early Saturday morning, September 1, 1990. My sister was calling from Arizona, so it was Friday, August 31 in the States. She said mom came home from working at her store, Mary Lu’s Uniform & Maternity Shop, had dinner with her brother (my Uncle Harlan), went home and started having trouble breathing. Struggling to breath, mom started using her breathing machine and “rescue” inhaler. When she didn’t improve, she called Uncle Harlan who called 911. Shortly after mom was admitted to the hospital, she went into a coma. Patti called me with the news as soon as she hung up with Uncle Harlan. Never in a million years would I have dreamt my mom wouldn’t “wake up” from the coma. She was strong, full of grit and still had way too many things to do. And, she was YOUNG – only 67 years old!
Sidebar: We had the best summer together. We attended my brother, Richie’s wedding in Florida, which was so special with the entire family. After the wedding, we rented a large van & drove to Washington DC, which was on her bucket list. My sister & her family joined us for a week filled with too many memories to count! When she flew back to Tennessee, her last words were, “See you at Thanksgiving, Kid”! (She called everyone Kid)! She bought her ticket to Cairo days later & was so excited to make another trip to Egypt.
When Patti called 45 minutes later to share the sad news mom passed, I dropped to my knees, screamed NO and sobbed uncontrollably. It couldn’t be true. She may have only been 5’2” and weighed 98 lbs, soaking wet, but she was bigger than life to me. Although she suffered from severe respiratory problems and even beat breast cancer, she had boundless energy and drive. She easly packed 120 years into the 67 years God gave her.
Mom was the most caring, generous and loving person I’ve ever known. She had a love of life that was evident in everything she said and did. As I said earlier, she had GRIT! There wasn’t anything my mom couldn’t do when she put her mind to it.
(I hope you’ll read my GRIT story which tells more about my mom). She truly was amazing! Just one example was when she decided to open a retail store in Tennessee after all of us kids were gone. She was 55 years old, didn’t finish college, had no capital or formal business training, but that didn’t stop her. She knew what people wanted and was “up” for the challenge. It wasn’t just her maternity clothes and a variety of uniforms she was selling; it was her own brand of love and hospitality, mixed with funny anecdotes about life.
Some of my favorite memories of mom are when she joined us on our travels, especially her trips to Egpyt. She came to Cairo twice while we lived there. We also visited Israel and other countries; she was so proud to have visited the Holy Land!
I’ll never forget the day we were getting ready to ride horses by the pyramids in Giza. She asked me to make sure the stable master gave her a “quiet” horse. When she fell further and further behind the group, I dropped back to check on her. She said, “Kid, I said a quiet horse, not a dead one!” We took her to the pyramids on another trip, this time to ride camels! She loved that experience & I still laugh out loud thinking about the camel handler trying to get my mom settled on top of that huge animal. I was close by & she really wanted a picture of the two of us. So, she didn’t hesitate to ask our Egyptian guide (who didn’t speak English) “Sir, Sir, would you please back this camel up?” Never a dull moment with Lucy! I wish I had kept a journal of all of her sayings!
Proverbs 31:10-31 reminds me of my mom. She was industrious and creative. She made all the clothes my sister and I wore. She even made my sister’s wedding gown. She was “…truly a woman whose price is far above rubies.”
Ma, I still miss you! Thanks for everything, especially your unconditional love! I know you’re in good hands!
Vs. 31: “Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.”
She named her store, “Mary Lu’s” after her firstborn grandchild! It was perfect!
