PERFECT Mother’s Day Gift

Mother’s day is probably the most meaningful of the yearly ‘un-holidays’. I call them that mostly because they are ‘acknowledgement’ or ‘thank you’ greeting card days. That is not meant to disrespect the mothers, fathers, administrative professionals, or named benefactors of similar holidays. It is just that, while perfect presents are nice, these days also should really carry a hefty bag full of thanks and reflection, along with the Ex-Gratia and swag.

Now whether I am close or far away from the mothers in my life, I usually send some type of note or little gift even if I cannot always visit. I have been late in calling my Mom or Mother-in-law before, but like most Mom’s they always seem to understand and don’t spank me (usually) – it must be something in their DNA? I knew immediately though, I was in for other Mother trouble when my daughter was born however. That event magically transformed my wife into an instant Mother too. My kid was supposed to wait about three weeks before entering this world – long after Mother’s Day would have passed. Well just to spite me, the kid was born literally JUST HOURS before Mother’s Day. I was in a panic.

Not only was being a new Dad cause for fear enough, I was now on the verge of missing my wife’s VERY FIRST Mother’s Day. My mind was reeling. I had to leave the hospital and go shopping for a card and something – ANYTHING, that a new mother might want or need. I knew the day was coming – NEXT YEAR, but I never imagined that I would not have at least 11 months to prepare. Eventually I settled on a couple of baby ‘wake up / sleep time’ music CD’s from Disney. I don’t think we ever used them much, but at the time, they truly were ALMOST the perfect gift for a new Mom.

In fact though, I have since learned, that the first gift I gave to my wife that day, was not really all that important. The CD’s were nice and she knew that I appreciated her obvious physical sacrifice and truly honored her new status as a Mom. But indeed, FOREVER, there was no gift that I could ever give to match the one that my kid had already given her. Amazingly, my own mother, her mother, and generation upon generations before – they all universally have felt the same way. They already had received a precious, valuable, irreplaceable, and most PERFECT gift – the title of ‘MOM’.

Happy Mother’s Day!