It’s never too late to be who you wanted to be.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Mommy Moment.


No, this is not an announcement. 

I am not pregnant. 

Relax.

I'm just having a mommy moment. 

Confused yet? Perfect. 

Here's the real story...
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Today I don't feel like doing aaaannnnyyyythaaaang. I just w a n n a lay in my beeed. 

snooze.

Today I don't feel like doing aaaannnnyyyythaaan-- 

snooze.

My eyes felt like slits. Opening them was like peeling the wrapper of a string cheese. 

Unreasonably difficult. 

Yes I had stayed up later than intended the night before. Yes it was 8:10 am. And yes I still hate mornings.. so saying I was 'more tired than usual' might be a stretch.. but still. It was rough. 

Definitely not a day for kickboxing. I could hear my body rejoicing at the decision already. 

I drug myself out of bed and into the bathroom without even opening my eyes. Talent? Thank you. I work on it daily. 

I somehow made it to class. And then another one. But that was it. I was homeward bound.

The bitter wind hit my face like icicles off a church roof. My ears felt like Bear Lake in January. 
I walked in my door in a haze, my stomach stirring in confusion. The call from my bed was almost audible

3 hours and one class later... it hit

My legs creaked. My head spun. My stomach churned. My body cringed.

I took a warm shower. Didn't help. 
I got in sweats... still to no avail. 
I curled up on the couch and put my homework away. My body groaned even more. 
Then somebody came through door. Sat down next to me. Pulled me close. And told me it would be okay. And the pain lifted. Just a little.

Little did I know the next 3 hours would be the worst yet. Little did I know my headache would worsen with the smack of the Linoleum floor and my nerve sensitivity would heighten with every movement.

That's when I realized what I really needed. 

That cheerful voice. Those tender blue eyes. That heart-warming smile. 

I needed her.

Call me cheesy but there are moments that are touchable only my mothers. Tears that are only wiped by her sleeve. Cuts that are only healed with her kiss. Hearts that are only healed through her hugs. 

Those moments where nothing and no one else are ever enough.

I was that five-year-old little girl again with scraped up knees. 
I was that twelve-year-old seventh grader scared to death of forgetting my locker combination.
I was that seventeen-year-old high school graduate so unsure of anything to come.

I was walking out of my first college final stress wrinkling my forehead and tears staining my cold cheeks. 
I was sitting on the floor of my apartment bedroom, feeling broken and alone.
I was teaching a hundred beautiful children in the hills of Thailand. 
I was snuggled on the couch by the fire on Christmas Eve. 

And right then, that Thursday evening, I was a twenty-year-old girl needing her mom to stroke her hair. Make her Ramen. Bring her ice chips. Tuck her favorite blanket tightly around her. Rub her back. 
And just be there. By her side. When her eyes drifted to a close and when they creeped open again. Just because that's what mommies do. At least ones like mine.

Come What May.

Sometimes we don't know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory. 

But sometimes. On Thursday nights. When we get the flu.. we cherish those moments. Those moments that created some of the most valued memories of our lives. Those moments only a mother can truly understand. 

So to all the mommies (or soon-to-be's, or one-day-want-to-be's, or heck- even for the daddies!)

Take the time. 

Create the moment. 

Because one day it will be a memory us kids will always remember. 

Until my next scraped knee,
R. 

3 comments:

Annie said...

Aren't mom's the best!? You've got a good one. Love you rachie.. and sorry to hear that you had the flu! Hope you're feeling better. xoxoxo

Becky H. said...

Sorry to hear about your passing out and being so sick. Wish I could have been there for you. Thanks for the shout out, glad you have some sweet memories... that little girl doesn't surface too often now that you are so grown up and far away. Glad you have some other arms to hug you when I can't. Can I take a rain check on the back scratch and ice chips.. until then just dig way down deep where memories keep and you'll find snuggly warm arms to keep you warm, I'll snuggle you warm.. Love you Rachie babe, always and forever. Love, MOM

Cameron said...

Such a novelist. Go write a book, Mrs. Tolken.