Sunday, May 8, 2011

Happy Mother's Day!

That best academy, a mother's knee.
James Russell Lowell, poet, critic and diplomat

The other day, as I was making homemade cream cheese, I began to think of my mom and a little dish she used to make for us when I was around 7 years old.

We lived in Mexico at the time; camping out because housing through my dad's job had fallen through. All six of us kids, plus our parents, lived in a tent and a van. It was a fair drive outside of town where my dad worked teaching English. Occasionally, when my dad brought fresh milk home, it would spoil and sour.

My mom would take that sour milk, which many people would deem unusable, and boil it up. The heat would cause the curds to separate from the whey and after straining the milk and collecting the curds, my mom would add honey (and perhaps a bit of lemon?) creating this wonderful little dessert. We loved it so much that we would clamour around my dad when he returned from home begging to know if perhaps the milk had spoiled again.

This has always been one of my favorite memories, but recently it came to mean more to me. As I got older, I learned that my mom doesn't really even enjoy cooking. She'll do it, but she doesn't feel confident in the kitchen and she'd rather not cook if she can avoid it. The fact that she would create this wonderful dish out of seeming defeat is that much more amazing to me.

I feel like this sums up my mom so wonderfully. She is one of the sweetest and most positive people I know. She doesn't just take life's lemons and make lemonade, she takes soured milk and makes cheese 'n' honey delight. And I'm not just saying that because she's my mom and I owe her my life. Anyone who knows her would back me up. She has always striven to put a bright and cheerful face on whatever she goes through and I admire and love her for that.


My mom and I last April

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!
I love you!


Unknown Mami





Exactly One Year Ago: Doncha Hate When This Happens?

13 comments:

  1. Such a sweet story ~ I love it when people share a specific anecdote that paints such a great picture of how they feel about someone!

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  2. Thank you for your tribute to your mom on this her day. I'm sure she will love it.

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  3. That's a great memory. Treasure your mom. Today and always.

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  4. That is such a great memory, and so fitting for Mother's Day.

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  5. Memories are meant to be shared, thanks for sharing yours! That was awesome.

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  6. You are your mother's child, yet another amazing person.
    Happy Mothers Day.

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  7. My fifth birthday was spent on a loooooong camping trip as my dad searched for a job and my mom looked for a new house to rent. They had pulled up stakes and just MOVED to another state without so much as a plan! Scary concept, but at the time it was just a great adventure for me.

    Happy Mother's Day!

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  8. Such a sweet tribute- Happy (belated) mother's day to you! You are such an amazing mom to so many boys and gals. Hope your day was wonderful :)

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  9. Nice portrait of mother and daughter. Congratulations to both.

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  10. That is so sweet Amy!! It is so amazing to think back on those memories and appreciate our moms. I hope your day was wonderful!

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  11. What a great memory. Thanks for sharing. Happy Mother's Day!!

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  12. I hope she got to read this; it's beautiful. I love the pic of the two of you.

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  13. Wow, that is amazing!! What a wonderful mama and a wonderful story. It takes a strong woman to do that... and homemade cream cheese? I think you learned quite a bit from her! :)

    ~Tabitha

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