Mother’s Day gifts to remember…what matters most to me…

I just returned from my aunt’s funeral. One of her daughters and one granddaughter got up to speak. Listening to them share memories and lessons learned from Aunt Jackie was beautiful. I would smile and nod my head in agreement with some of their remembrances.  When I think about what my children or one-day-grands will say about me (unless Jesus comes before that happens), I pray they will look back at our life together and smile because of the lessons I’ve tried to instill in them, and all the fun memories we share with one another.

This past Mother’s Day was one of those days that I want to record so that mine and Tim’s children to remember what means the most to me.

This post may be a little late, but Mother’s Day 2023…

It was a perfect day. Tim, Holly, Cole, and I were at the beach. I had awakened before anyone else. Lying in bed, I prayed, thought about my momma and Tim’s late mother, and counted my blessings. While they were snug as a bug in their beds, I made myself some blueberry pancakes, a bowl of watermelon and strawberries, and a cup of hot tea. Soon after, I called my momma who was in Georgia. The door opened and in walked our eldest son. Now the whole family was here. My heart was happy. But that’s just the beginning.

Once everyone got dressed, we went to church on the island. The music choices were perfect! One song that I often sing when thinking about my kids is Blessing by Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, and Elevation Worship. You guessed it…we sang it. Tears were in my eyes, while joy was in my heart.

The children did give me treasured gifts and a beautiful card, but little did they know, their real gifts were about to happen.

Long story short…my gifts:

• Tim gave me the gift of three beautiful children, selflessness, and love. He made sure that this day was all about me. I love you, Timothy Wayne Shuff!
• Hunter, he gave me a gift of quality time and thoughtfulness. He woke that morning and drove an hour and twenty minutes just to come to church with me and spend the day. He knows my faith is most important, and sharing time with Jesus together makes this momma’s heart happy. Then, when we were fishing, it was Hunter’s thoughtful suggestion for me to have the fish (see Cole’s gift to understand).
• Holly, the gift of communication. Our chats warm my soul. She has questioned before, “Mom, are you sorry you prayed the prayer you did before I was born?” You see, I prayed that if I had a girl, that God would give us an open and honest relationship. I always reply to her with delight how grateful I am that God answered my prayer, and that her complete honesty often just gives me more to pray about. Hahaha! Sitting on the boat and in the pool and chatting it up with my girl thrills me.
• Cole gave me the gift of selflessness. We were all in the boat tarpon fishing. Cole hooked up to about a 70+ pound tarpon. I quickly grabbed my phone and went to the tower to begin the video. I was ready. Then, Hunter said, “Cole, you should give it to mom.” Now, this was our first tarpon of the season, so having the bragging rights could have taking hold, but Cole agreed and gave the rod to me without hesitation. After a quick, “no you take it”, and an insistence on the family’s end, who am I to steal their joy. LOL!! You better believe I got down from that tower and fought that fish. A legal catch was made, and it was very satisfying.

They day just continued with satisfaction. My appetite was satisfied by the delicious lobster ravioli we had dinner for the evening. A visit and conversations with my sweet friend, Susan was precious. Then her nephew (one of Cole’s best lifelong friends), Noah, came by as well to spend time with us.

Finally, one more gift from Tim…he saw the flash!!! Yes! What flash? Seeing the sunset is one of the moments that just brings me peace and joy. I just took a pleasant sigh thinking about it now.  Watching The Greatest Artist ever brush the sky never gets old. For years I’ve tried to have Tim see the green flash that occasionally occurs when the top tip of the sun hits the water horizon. It’s not a huge flash as it is a quick (“flash”) pinpoint dot…yellow and blue make green. Tim and I were sitting in our chairs on the beach with our toes in the sand. I could tell that this could be a green flash night, but I didn’t say anything. When the sun went down, Tim said “I saw it.” What?! That just made my night. Happy Mother’s Day to me!

So, what can my kids remember about their momma? That her faith is strong and love for Jesus is most important thing in life. They can know that quality time is the greatest gift we can often give one another. Whether we are spending time together on the boat, in the pool, on the beach, sitting around a table, or wherever, being together laughing, and having conversation is delightful. Family, the love that it entails, is so important to me, and the memories we make together are priceless gifts.