MEMORIES OF MOM
Bill Yoder

Heather Hershey – Tompkins

My friend, Heather, goes to my churches web site on a regular basis to read my devotionals. She will text me or email me to give me positive feedback and cheer me on to keep writing. That must be working because I do keep writing. She recently sent me an email to share a letter she wrote to her mother, who was battling cancer. Here are just a few excerpts from that letter.

“Here is a letter I wrote to my mother before she passed. Unfortunately, my mother never read it but that is OK because I think it was mostly for me.”

Dear mom,

I am writing this letter to let you know how special and important you are to me and how you have impacted my life. You have taught me many things and have made me the person I am today. I am honored and proud to be your daughter. You supported my ideas, even if they were not so great, and inspired me to work on becoming the best me I can possibly be. I remember the Jenny Sue Fisher-Price doll you gave me. It was my ultimate favorite toy. I took it everywhere and I would hold it by its hair. To this day I still have this doll. You are the most amazing person I know. I will never be able to express my full gratitude to you for everything you have done for me and continue to do. You have always been in my heart and I love you to the moon and back.

Love, Heather

I’m going to follow Heather’s example by writing my mother a letter to express my thanks to her and how she affected my life. As I remember more, I will add to that letter. I will keep that letter on file so I can read it from time to time. My mother will never read it but as Heather put it so well, “I think it was mostly for me.”

“Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.” Proverbs 1 : 8 NIV