In his book Standing for Something, Gordon B. Hinckley shares a story of the impact a great mother can have:

The story is told that in ancient Rome a group of women were, with vanity, showing their jewels to one another. Among them was Cornelia, the mother of two boys. One of the women said to her, “And where are your jewels?” Cornelia responded, pointing to her sons, “These are my jewels.”

Under her tutelage, and walking after the virtues of her life, they grew to become Gaius and Tiberius Gracchus—the Gracchi, as they were called—two of the most persuasive and effective reformers in Roman history. For as long as they are remembered and spoken of, the mother who reared them after the manner of her own life will be remembered and spoken of with praise also.

Like Cornelia, my mother is a great woman. She gave birth to me and my three siblings and spent countless hours feeding, teaching, and otherwise taking care of us. We have always been her jewels.

My mom and I once had a discussion about the different decades she lived in. When the eighties came up, she said, \”I don\’t remember much from the eighties. They were a blur.\” (Me and my siblings were all born that decade.) This isn\’t too surprising. Her children were her life. They still are.

I have to thank my mom for my love of reading. When I was in second grade my class participated in Electronic Bookshelf. Basically, we would read a book then take a 10-question test. If you got eight or more correct answers, you passed. There were prizes awarded for every 10 books completed. The prizes stopped at 50. I ended up reading 160 and the Los Angeles Times wrote a story about it. My mom was my #1 fan. She encouraged me, bought books for me, and stayed after school with me while I took the tests.

A few years later I got sucked into the Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine. Whenever a new one would come out she would drop whatever she had planned to take me to the local bookstore. Stine wrote A TON of Goosebumps books, so this was a lot of trips for her. She never complained. She always supported my love of reading.

But it wasn\’t just reading. She was there to support me in everything I pursued. My mom is the perfect example of unconditional love. She is a wonderful woman. I love her.

I am grateful for my mother.

#30daysofgratitude