Today is my sweet mother's birthday and in celebration, here are 10 things I love about you, mommy:
1. You love me even though I was a little terror of a child and sometimes resort back to those tendencies. 2. You let me date a few losers, but let me figure that out myself. 3. You make every holiday, birthday, season, day extra special. 4. You're generous, thoughtful and kind. 5. You forgave me when I ruined your table (ok, maybe we're still working on this one ;-)) 6. You're creatively hospitable. 7. You don't make me feel like a loser when I get in my jammies and go to bed at nine o'clock. 8. You're discerning and wise. 9. You've become a good friend of mine. 10. You loved me first.
And because it brings such a sense of excitement and inspiration.
After giving my hello hugs, it's almost ritual to wander around the house and look for what new treasures my mom has tucked away.Sometimes it's something big, like a new piece of furniture or a new mattress, but most of the time it's that extra little something that really ties the room together. That extra special something that makes you want to soak it in all day long and never leave the house. You know, those things that would almost (but not quite fully) still make it feel like home even if all the people who truly make it home were absent for a moment. The smell of a new fresh balsam candle, a collection of old, thrifted silverware arranged in a beautiful glass jar, a new pennant mom has made, hanging across the window valence in her craft room.
My mother has many gifts, but one is unarguably what I like to call Creative Hospitality. Both qualities are rather nice to have on their own: creativity and hospitality, but when you couple them together, that marriage results in an overwhelming warmth of the heart. It's life-giving. And inspirational. You can't not be affected.
I love that I share that same passion with my mom. That passion to create a beautiful place, filled with love to enjoy with others. But I have awfully big shoes to fill. And I encourage myself to remember that whenever I'm wide-eyed at what my mom has done.I'm a newlywed. A new college grad. An 22-year old who hasn't mastered this all quiet yet. But boy is it so fun to learn, to experiment, and to play. I love that place of tension, where dear friends appreciate your hard work while role models encourage it to grow and develop even more. I love being challenged. And I think that's something I will always be, challenged by my mom's creative hospitality.
Disclaimer: I'm very well aware that a home is not just a collection of things, but at the same time I think something must be said for the physically beautiful home my mom has made for our family. It's in that environment and in spite of that environment that I've experienced the true meaning of home.
