A tree surgeon once badly overcharged my mother, back in the early 70s. We had five acres of land and lots of trees, but very little money. To feed us, my mother raised sheep and grew fruit and vegetables, kept hens, and often worked far into the night preparing and freezing food to keep us all year round. One of our trees overhung the road that wound round the boundary of our place, and a branch had rot, so the tree surgeon was hired to saw it off. He charged £100, a LOT of money at that time. My mother said very little, but I think she must have felt worried and upset, because we had such a tight household budget. He saw that she looked none too pleased, and he said to her: “Let me know if ever you’re in any trouble and I’ll do what I can to help.”
I, a teenager, standing watching, listened to her reply:
“If ever I’m in trouble, I’ll find a way out of it somehow without coming to you.”
Now, my mother is not an ungracious woman, and she didn’t complain abut his charges, but her words modelled a courage and determination I have remembered always. She accepted what he was and what he did; but she would never go back for more.
She has spirit. She is very brave. I love that about her.

It’s hard for me to put into words what all my mother taught me…this may sound odd, but I feel like, at this current time in my life, I am just beginning to see, and to understand more clearly, all that my mother taught me.
Two main things that first come to mind are – how to love others and secondly, how to take time to see, not just look, but really see.

The post with some details about my parents’ divorce is here:

http://www.justjulieb.com/when-a-heart-breaks/

I’m so glad you stopped by Elizabeth…God bless your day! xo

1. Kindness is the best thing to turn away ugliness. If someone treats me with disrespect or is cruel, I pray Phil 4:13 and seek to respond in kindness no matter what the circumstances. If nothing else, it lessens the bitterness in my own heart toward others.
2. Treating myself like my own best friend is often required when I find I am being overly hard on myself. She taught me to talk to myself as I would someone I loved, giving sage advice or just letting myself off the hook after a bad decision.
3. Entertaining is an art. My mother knew how to put out a spread. When it came to entertaining, my mom was THE BOMB! I would see all the prep work sometimes starting days before, but it would all seem so effortless during the event. A definite class act!
4. Life holds no guarantees. Similarly, my parents divorced after almost four decades of marriage. The trauma in my life of that event scarred, but changed me for the better as well. Even though my family was severely fractured at the time, my parents remained respectful towards each other and continued to care about each other. My brothers and I were never put in the middle.
5. We are never too old to learn. At 77 years old she continues to learn new things all the time, scripture, computers, accounting, writing, and anything else she comes across. If determined enough one can master what one sets out to accomplish.

As the years roll on by I realize how precious life is. While my mother and I don’t always agree, one thing we definitely agree on, life is meant to be lived out with purpose and love. We continue to learn from each other the things which are meant to be passed between mother and daughter and on down through the generations. I am blessed and seek to remind my mother how blessed I am because she is my mother.