thirty-seven years ago today, my mother passed away; she was only 41.
a few years before that she had a stroke which left the right side of her body paralyzed. unable to do even the most basic things and relearning everything with her left hand, she lost her zest for life. some days she spent brooding, feeling guilty about things she never had control of. but what gave her satisfaction was making two neighbourhood boys feel important. one was written off as an "abnormal child" who at 5 could not talk but my mother's engaging smile made him come to our house everyday and my mother taught him to speak. he cried at her funeral. another boy who was adopted and abused found solace talking to her.
she was born to poor farmers, forced to leave school at ten to help her family at home. at barely sixteen she married my father, ten years her senior, and had eight children (two died in infancy). never known how it was to have extra money in her pocket, never gone to any far away and interesting places. but she was proud of her birthplace, the poor sleepy farming town and its surrounding villages and cities. and she was proud of her children, the ones who bore her dreams to finish schooling. she washed clothes of other people (to my father's dislike and shame but didn't do anything about it) to augment the family income.
she cried the night i handed her my full paycheck, my very first one, and told her to keep some for me and use the rest for household expenses. she kept it in her dress pocket, patted it every now and then. the next day she gave it back to me, told me, i should buy some good shoes, the ones that i could use for a long time. and a dress or two. i bought her a box of candies which she distributed to the neighbourhood children who came to the house everyday to watch tv with her.
she made a lot of sacrifices in her life. with no complaining. she was a beautiful person, inside and out. everyday, i always wish she's here.
p.s.: my father originally took these photos, developed and processed them. these were copies that we had recovered and had them restored.
-o0o-
joining in the leap year bucket list challenge. here's the link;
http://365project.org/discuss/themes-competitions/10455/leap-year-bucket-list
if you wish to join and have some fun.
@karenann - thank you, karenann for your kind words. much appreciated.
@catsmeowb - thank you, camille, for the kind words. much appreciated.
@sarasdadandmom - thank you, terry. much appreciated.
@steeler - you made me cry some more. thank you, howard.
@jannkc - thank you, jann. much appreciated.
@crickle1969 - thank you, crickle. much appreciated.
~ I lost my dad 22 years ago (I was 13, it was a car accident) I feel your pain. I so wish he could have been here to meet my hubby and kids. He was the ultimate Mr Mom. ~
@sanera - thank you, sam. i'm sorry about your dad. i see in my youngest grandson my mother's shyness and sometimes, he would be pacing with his hands behind him, the first time i saw that, i had goose bumps because first thing that came to mind was my mother and how she always did that.
And I like the Leap Year Bucket List -- I'm in! (I've been at a loss for inspiration -- thanks!)
there's also a colour alphabet in february (see: http://365project.org/discuss/themes-competitions/10604/colour-my-february )
join one or all of them :-)
have fun.
@alia_801 - thank you, alia.