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“Mother
— Always There ”
By Steve and Claudia Goodman
Recently one of our children
sang a solo on a choir concert. Afterward no one said much about her performance.
She felt she had done an outstanding job, but without feedback, she began
to question her ability. The first thing she asked when she got home was,
“Mom, what did you think of my solo? How did I do?” She needed reassurance
from someone she could trust.
We hear so much about quality
time, and it is very important. However, we can’t minimize the critical role
of quantity time. How many diapers does a mother change? How frequently
does she remind her children to say their prayers? How often does she patiently
help them resolve their differences so they can learn to get along? Can she
eliminate such routine chores simply because they are not profound, life-changing
experiences in and of themselves?
One repetition does not
complete a task any more effectively than saying a word once teaches children
to talk, or saying a single prayer keeps them close to God. Someone needs
to be there consistently to follow through again and again on the small
things. Everyone needs someone to laugh with them when life takes unexpected
turns, to cry with them over crushing heartaches large and small, to celebrate
with them when victory finally comes. No wonder so many count their mothers
among their dearest and closest friends. Little things done again and again
over the years by someone we can count on bring stability and trust to our
lives — and love.
For most of us, mother is
a constant in this shifting world — one who is always
there — someone we can depend upon. When everything else in our lives is
adrift, there is one place we return again and again to get our bearings —
home. Mother’s face is usually the first one a baby comes to recognize.
Hers is the voice that echoes love, hers the gentle touch that soothes away
pain and fear.
The saying, “God couldn’t
be everywhere, so He gave us mothers,” generally holds true. It is from our
mothers that we learn the magnitude of God’s love — that He will always be
there for us. In fact, so powerful and unfailing is a mother’s love that
the Lord uses that very comparison to illustrate His love for us. “For can
a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the
son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house
of Israel. Behold, I have graven thee upon
the palms of my hands …” (1 Nephi 21:15-16)
Whatever else we acknowledge
about our mothers, perhaps one of the most profound attributes is that they
are always there for us. This beautiful song written about Joseph Smith illustrates
that principle:
I Went Home
It was there in
my home that I learned long ago
The lessons that carried me through
All the trials and strife that stood in my path
As from child to man I grew.
It was there
in my home that I learned how to play,
How to work and the meaning of love.
I
learned from example the power of prayer.
I grew close to my Father above.
I remember the
nights with my family so close,
How we laughed, how we sang, how we prayed.
I learned from my family the lessons of life.
And I grew with my mind unafraid.
Then on that
clear spring morning
I went to the grove as a youth.
I needed to have an answer.
I went in search of truth.
And after that
glorious moment,
When they had talked to me,
I rose from my knees, I ran up the path,
I wanted the world to see
That the lessons
I’d learned through those fourteen years
Were not meant for me alone.
I
knew what to do, I knew where to go.
I went home, I went home, I went home.
By
Ralph G. Rodgers, Jr.
(Based on
a talk by Elder Marvin J. Ashton)
Mothers, we salute you for
your untiring devotion to us, for the continuing expression of your love.
May we forever hold in our memories the reassurance that you are always
there.
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© 2005 Meridian
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