Welcome to Pearl Girls Mother of Pearl Mother's Day blog series. The
series is week long celebration of moms and mothering. Each day will feature a
new post by some of today's best writer's (Tricia Goyer, Megan Alexander, Suzanne Woods Fisher, Beth Engelman, Holley Gerth,
Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, and more). I hope you'll join us each day for
another unique perspective on Mother's Day.
AND ... do enter the contest for a chance to win a
beautiful hand crafted pearl necklace. To enter, just {CLICK
THIS LINK} and fill out the short form. Contest runs 5/1-5/8 and the
winner will on 5/11. Contest is only open to US and Canadian residents.
If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls, please visit
www.pearlgirls.info and see
what we're all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that
help women and children in the US
and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit,
Experiencing Grace or one of the Pearl Girls products
(all GREAT Mother's Day gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.
And to all you MOMS out there! Happy Mother's Day!
PEARL PINS by Margaret McSweeney
At age 49, I am a mom without a mom. This deep longing for
my mother continues to surprise me. During milestone moments, I imagine phone
conversations with her.
“Can you believe that Melissa is graduating from high school
in June? I’m so glad you will be flying to Chicago to be here with us.”
“Wasn’t that a fun family dinner we all had last weekend to
celebrate Katie’s ‘sweet sixteen?’ I am so glad you could join us.”
“Isn’t this exciting? I just got a new book contract. Will
you please edit my manuscript before I send it in?”
Sadly, this will be my eighth Mother’s Day to spend without
my mother. She has missed some poignant milestones in my life and in the lives
of my daughters. Both Melissa and Katie were very young when she died so they
don’t have a full reservoir of memories about Grandmommy Rhea. However, they do
have the legacy of faith that she helped instill in them as toddlers. She loved
to send Veggie Tales tapes, Children’s Bibles and devotional books.
Melissa and Katie were blessed to have Nana, (Dave’s mother)
around for much longer. Nana passed away two years ago. A few years before Nana
died, she gave me a beautiful necklace with a diamond pendant made from her
wedding ring along with a pair of diamond earrings. She asked me to give these
special gifts to Melissa and Katie for their sixteenth birthdays. Even though
Nana wasn’t around to celebrate, my daughters were so happy to receive such
special keepsakes from her. Hugs from heaven.
Last week on Katie’s 16th birthday, I discovered an
unexpected blessing that had been tucked away in a cardboard container of my
mother’s things. A jewelry box with three pearl pins! I gave one to Melissa as
a belated 16th birthday gift, and I presented one to Katie for her 16th
birthday. This Mother’s Day, I will wear my mother’s pearl pin as a tangible
reminder that a mother’s love (and a grandmother’s love) is an everlasting gift
from God.
Finding these gifts made me think about what I might leave
for my own daughters someday. It isn’t the external value of the gift that
matters, but rather the love that it represents.
Is there a special gift or letter that you would like
to leave your children?
Margaret McSweeney lives with her husband, David and two
teenage daughters in the Chicago
suburbs. After earning a master’s degree in international business from
the University of South Carolina, Margaret moved to New York City to work at a large bank where
she met David. Margaret is the editor of Pearl Girls, author of A
Mother’s Heart Knows and co-author of Go Back and Be Happy. Charity and
community involvement are very important to Margaret. She has served on the
board of directors for WINGS (Women in Need Growing Stronger) for over eight
years. For more information, find Margaret at www.pearlgirls.info and
www.kitchenchat.info.
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