12 Short, Sweet Stories About Moms (That Will Make You Want to Call Yours)

Transcription

1 12 Short, Sweet Stories About Moms (That Will Make You Want to Call Yours) : MOTHER OF ROCK by Paul Anderson, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan [1] For my brother, my sister, and me, Guitar Hero was a competition of who could score the most points on the hardest level. Mom, on the other hand, would play the ten-minute Freebird on the easiest level while we kids prepared for our next showdown. When Mom restarted the song after missing a note, we all shouted our disapproval. Rock stars do what they want, she said, and we laughed because we agreed: Mom was a rock star. That s why, later, her funeral felt more like the last stop on a farewell tour, with Freebird as the perfect send-off. score He scored 100 on the test. 100 prepare for How do I prepare for the exams? showdown Fans gathered outside the stadium for the final showdown. disapproval

2 He shook his head in disapproval. farewell She said her farewells and left. send-off All the people in the buildings came to give me a send-off. TWO SIMPLE WORDS by Abigail Wortman, West Long Branch, New Jersey [2] On the first day of first grade, I stood by the front door with butterflies in my stomach. I voiced my biggest concern to my mother: How will I make friends? Crouching in front of me, she handed me advice I carry with me to this day: Be Switzerland. Be friends with everyone. Treat everyone equally and fairly. For all of my 20 years, I have lived by these words. Soon I will graduate and become a part of the real world. And on that first day, nervously facing new responsibilities, I know I will whisper two words to myself: Be Switzerland. voice Some scientists have voiced concern that the disease could be passed on to humans. crouch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. equally

3 All these techniques are equally effective. fairly He has always treated me very fairly. MY LITTLE ST. NICK by Brenda Bokor Wismer, Pinedale, Wyoming My six-year-old son, Nicholas, sat in the grocery cart as I perused the canned vegetables. How about this one, Mommy? he asked, and handed me a can of asparagus. I love asparagus! I told him. Asparagus is my favorite vegetable, but it s just too expensive. I put the can back on the shelf. Three months later, I opened a crudely wrapped present from under the Christmas tree. It was a can of asparagus. Nicholas beamed in delight as he explained how he had saved his pennies to buy me the best Christmas gift I d ever received. grocery They run a small grocery store. peruse We perused the company s financial statements for the past five years. 5 canned I like canned pineapple and peaches. asparagus crudely

4 to put it crudely THE NEED NEVER GOES AWAY by Saman Rahman, Peshawar, Pakistan Mommy, you are a fairy, I said. My mother laughed like tinkling bells. I am serious, Mother. You know everything. My child, I try to answer as best as I can. When you grow older, you will not need me, she said. No, Mom, I will always need you. Nothing can change that, I said. Her words echo in my heart as I look at the blue sky: Dear daughter, nothing remains the same except the vast blue sky. It has been ten years since I lost my fairy. Mom, you were wrong about one thing: I still need you. fairy tinkle The little bell tinkles. echo The gunshot echoed through the forest. A STAND-UP WOMAN by Robin Hynes, Slingerland, New York My mom had a great sense of humor and a knack for making everything fun. One thing that resonated with me, even as a small child, was how much she seemed to enjoy her own company and found ways to entertain herself. As a kid, I remember her giggling while paying bills. What was so funny about bill paying? She would put humorous notes in the reference section of the check: For the electric bill, she might put You light up my life, and for the mortgage she d write Four shingles closer to owning it all. knack

5 He s got the knack of getting people to listen. resonate ( ) What are the issues resonating with voters? giggle Both girls began to giggle. shingle The roofs had shingles missing. THE HARDEST CHOICE by Andrea Cortinas, El Paso, Texas Thirty-five years ago, when my mom was 22, she became a widow and a mother within the same month. The life she had imagined was stolen in a heartbeat. She tried to move on, but was lost. She gave me to my father s family to be raised in the United States. Some call her weak; others call her selfish. I could be mad or bitter. Instead, I m grateful for the life I have and to have a mother who sacrificed our relationship to give me a chance at a better life. She is courageous. She is my mother. widow She became a widow a year ago. move on If you do mess up, admit it and move on.

6 sacrifice ; She sacrificed family life to her career. courageous The children were very courageous. JUST ONE MORE QUESTION by Katina Brown, West Monroe, Louisiana I was chosen to be your mama, I tell my four-year-old daughter as my younger boys pull at my clothes. She looks at me tearfully and asks, Why couldn t I grow in your tummy like my brothers? Well, I tell her, choking back my own tears, The doctor said I couldn t grow a baby in my tummy, so your daddy and I decided to adopt a baby. That baby was you. I hold my breath and wait for a more difficult question. Can I have some ice cream? she asks. Yes! I say, thankful for her innocence. tearfully Dad takes him to the bar and tearfully tells the son he is proud of him. tummy ( ) Your baby s tummy should feel warm, but not hot. MEMORIES IN VERSE by Pat Witty, Fairmont, Minnesota The day I was dreading had arrived it was inevitable. I had seen it coming but had chosen to ignore it for as long as possible. My very capable, intelligent mom had started forgetting to pay her bills, and it was time to take over her finances. As I looked through her wallet, I made a remarkable discovery. Tucked

7 away in a tiny compartment were four Mother s Day poems I d written for her in the 1960s. She had saved and cherished those simple gifts for 50 years. What a happy surprise! dread ; I m dreading Christmas this year. inevitable It s inevitable that we re going to die. capable Show your teacher what you are capable of. intelligent If you want to make the intelligent choice, trust me on this. take over I m going to take over the company one day. tuck away She kept his letters tucked away in a drawer. compartment

8 The fire started in the baggage compartment. cherished He described the picture as his most cherished possession. TO MOM, ON HER SPECIAL DAY by Megan McPartland, Levittown, New York In 1976, my grandfather wrote a story about his fondest Christmas memories and submitted it to Reader s Digest. Recently, while cleaning out his basement, my mom discovered the well preserved writing as well as the letter of regret from the magazine, as the piece was not published. After reading his story, I learned that my mom came from an amazing family and with the help of my dad, she raised an amazing family herself. Mom, if you are reading this, Happy Mother s Day! I love you. submit That is one of the answers we submitted. clean out Mr. Smith asked if I would help him clean out the room. preserve We will do everything to preserve peace. MIGHT AS WELL FACE IT by Beth Kailukaitis, Kalamazoo Township, Michigan

9 Coming home from work one day, I found my mom dancing to Robert Palmer s Addicted to Love. I watched, enthralled, as she moved and sang along, her hips twisting to the beat, big smile plastered on her face. It had been a long while since I d seen her dance, so this display of pure joy was infectious. She died unexpectedly in her sleep a few weeks later. I have many memories of her that I ll always cherish, but none quite as happy and carefree as her dance that day. It s definitely the simple things thanks, Robert Palmer! dance to ( ) We dance to the music. addicted to He became addicted to drugs. enthral The passengers were enthralled by the scenery. plaster to plaster posters on walls infectious A smile is infectious. Be a positive person and share your smile with others. carefree He looked happy and carefree.

10 PAY IT FORWARD by Teresa Martin, North Aurora, Illinois You reap what you sow: In her old country, my mom saw a very poor blind woman with her young daughter. She felt sorry for them and loaned them all her savings. Although Mom was worried sick about it, they miraculously returned every cent. Two decades later, when Mom left her Communist country and came to America as a refugee, the Catholic Church gave her money to feed her many children. She returned them every single cent, and her children continued to pay back through worldwide charities. Mom is now 90 years old and has a richly blessed life. reap His good behavior reaped praise. sow ( ) Sow the seed in a warm place in March. 3 feel sorry for I do feel sorry for what I have done. loan The teacher loaned her a dictionary. miraculously blessed I feel so blessed.

11 A SCARLET SYMBOL by Priscilla Hartling, West Allis, Wisconsin My mother was my best friend. She loved cardinals, the male red ones. When she got sick with pancreatic cancer and knew death was near, she told me to always look for the red cardinal that would be her. I never paid too much attention to that statement; I was too busy becoming an adult. Twenty-five years later, every time I feel at my wits end, there is a cardinal flying past me or in a nearby tree. Is it coincidence, or my mother, all these years later, letting me know that everything will be OK? I ll take the latter. cardinal pancreatic wit It s a game of wits and will. coincidence It s not just a coincidence that they re doing it at the same time. score prepare for showdown disapproval farewell send-off

12 voice crouch equally fairly grocery peruse canned asparagus crudely fairy tinkle echo knack resonate ( ) giggle shingle widow move on sacrifice ; courageous tearfully tummy ( )

13 dread ; inevitable capable intelligent take over tuck away compartment cherished submit clean out preserve dance to ( ) addicted to enthral plaster infectious carefree reap sow ( ) feel sorry for loan miraculously

14 blessed cardinal pancreatic wit coincidence 1. That s why, later, her funeral felt more like the last stop on a farewell tour, with Freebird as the perfect sendoff. Freebird 2. Crouching in front of me, she handed me advice I carry with me to this day: Be Switzerland. Be friends with everyone. 3. Her words echo in my heart as I look at the blue sky: Dear daughter, nothing remains the same except the vast blue sky. 4. One thing that resonated with me, even as a small child, was how much she seemed to enjoy her own company and found ways to entertain herself. 5. I could be mad or bitter. Instead, I m grateful for the life I have and to have a mother who sacrificed our relationship to give me a chance at a better life.

15 6. My very capable, intelligent mom had started forgetting to pay her bills, and it was time to take over her finances. 7. I watched, enthralled, as she moved and sang along, her hips twisting to the beat, big smile plastered on her face. 8. I never paid too much attention to that statement; I was too busy becoming an adult.