Mother's day

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers out there. OK, I made three attempts to add pictures, but I got an error each time. Maybe I'll post pictures next time, if the computer will allow me.

I thought that Mother's Day was Next Sunday. Luckily I'm on the ball, I already have the gift all ready to give my wife, but it's sitting on my desk at work. So my wife got nothing for mother's day. I tried to redeem myself by making her breakfast in bed, except that didn't work out very well because the boys didn't wake up in time to get it to her in bed. I also made dinner and did the dishes. Frankly I think that is a lame Mother's Day gift. Be serious, doing one of my wife's MANY chores for one day (I do try to do it more often than that), is a sad excuse for a gift. I really don't think there is a gift in existence that would sufficiently say "thank you" to a mother. The beauty of it is that my wife is completely OK with me not getting her anything (I did get her something, I just forgot it on my desk, really, I did). You see, my wife and I share the same ideas. She doesn't want to accumulate stuff, just like I don't want to accumulate stuff. Her idea of a good gift is centered around thought, being environmentally friendly and inexpensive. I agree with her completely. I sometimes wonder how I found someone with whom I have so much in common.

In my Environmental health class last semester we spent some time talking about mothers and how they pertain to environmental health. Ultimately they are frequently victims of all sorts of atrocities. When families in third world countries are impoverished, diseased or otherwise afflicted by their environments, they don't often stay together. The father often leaves, looking for a better situation, not to better provide for his family, but to fend for himself. Men often leave their families in difficult situations in order to save themselves (I realize this is a generalization, but it also reflects a problem we see in parts of the world). Women, on the other hand, and more specifically mothers, almost always stick with their children. Many of them will suffer death while caring for their children. There is something innate in mothers that makes them nurturers and makes them care more about others than themselves.

Of course my wife and my mother are the best examples of mothers I will ever be able to find, I sometimes wonder (not for long) if it is only because I know them better than most mothers. I'm sure that's not it. I'm positive that my mother and the mother of my children are the best mothers ever, but mothers in general still stand heads above the rest because of their dedication to protect the next generation.

So I want to give my thanks to mothers. Of course my own, but also all mothers who are willing to sacrifice for the good of the next generation. It's a thankless job, but the most also the most important job in the world.