Friends,
In honor of my mother, Kathryn L. Miller Snyder, I am sharing a short
reading with my fellow PWP (Parkies With Pizzazz) that Mother selected for
her collection of humorous, pithy and inspirational writings. I'm sending it
early so those who want to share it with their families may copy & format it
for use on Mother's Day, May 9, 1999. It brings tears to my eyes and a lump
to my throat. I dedicate it to all the mothers closest to us, of all ages.
Hope you enjoy it.
Jim Snyder mailto:[log in to unmask]
Parable For Mothers
The young mother set her foot on the path of life. "Is the way long?" she
asked. And her guide said, "Yes, and the way is hard. And you will be old
before you reach the end of it. But the end will be better than the
beginning." But the young mother was happy and she would not believe that
anything could be better than these years. So she played with her children
and gathered flowers for them along the way and bathed with them in the
clear streams; and the sun shone on them and life was good, and the young
mother cried, "Nothing will ever be lovelier than this."
Then night came, and the storm, and the path was dark and the children shook
with fear and cold, and the mother drew them close and covered them with her
mantle, and the children said, "Oh Mother, we are not afraid for you are
near and no harm can come." And the mother said, "This is better than the
brightest of day for I have taught my children courage."
And the morning came, and there was a hill ahead and the children climbed
and grew weary, but at all times she said to the children, "A little
patience and we are there." So the children climbed and when they reached
the top, they said, "We could not have done it without you, Mother." And
the mother, when she lay down that night, looked up at the stars and said,
"This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned fortitude
in the face of hardness. Yesterday I gave them courage; today I have given
them strength."
And the next day came strange clouds that darkened the earth - clouds of
hate and evil - and the children groped and stumbled and the mother said,
"Look up. Lift your eyes to the light." And the children looked and saw
beyond the darkness. And that night the mother said, "This is the best day
of all, for I have shown my children God."
And the days went on, and the weeks and the months and years, and the mother
grew old, and she was little and bent. But her children were tall and
strong and walked with courage. And when the way was rough they lifted her,
for she was as light as a feather; and at last they came to a hill, and
beyond the hill they could see a shining road and golden gates flung wide.
And the mother said, "I have reached the end of my journey. And now I know
the end is better than the beginning, for my children can walk alone and
their children after them."
And the children said, "You will always walk with us Mother, even when you
have gone through the gates."
And they stood and watched her as she went on alone, and the gates closed
after her. And they said, "We cannot see her, but she is with us still. A
mother like ours is more than a memory. She is a living presence."
- - - Temple Bailey
