Timeless Bonds: A Memorable Mom Moment

This is in response to the StoryWorth question: What is one of your favorite memories of your mother?

When it came to my parents, I hit the jackpot. I have many good memories of both Mom and Dad and I hope to make many, many more in the future. I have one memory of Mom that has stuck with me these many years.

When I was in high school, we lived on a farm on the outskirts of Wartrace, Tennessee. Our land was all we could see to the fore and to the aft of our house. We had neighbors to the left and right but they were several yards away and their houses were barely noticeable.

I remember one night after we had all gone to bed, I woke up. I heard sounds so I got up to investigate. My parents were in the kitchen talking with Mr. Crow, a neighbor from up the road. I looked out the window and I could see our neighbors, the Wildish family’s home going up in flames.

Ms. Wildish was a school teacher and she had three children with her first husband and a son with her second husband. She and her second husband had been divorced for a while so Ms. Wildish and her four kids lived in the old farmhouse alone.

The oldest boy was Robbie and he and my brother were good friends. We were good friends with Ms. Wildish. I think that Mr. Crow had probably told us that night that the Wildish family was okay, but it was still sad to watch their home and all of their belongings go up in flames.

In the days immediately after the fire, folks started providing clothing and personal items for the family. Mom decided that she was going to go shopping for Sondra, the mother. I recall asking her if she was going to get the kids anything and she told me that many folks would likely provide for the children, but they may not remember the mother. Mom was going to make sure that Sondra was remembered.

So, we went to the Castner Knott in Tullahoma. That was our favorite place to shop. We loved that store.

I thought that Mom was just going to hurriedly buy a few things but that was not what she had in mind. Mom searched through the clothing; and when Mom searches, no stone goes unturned. It can take fifteen minutes for Mom to pick out a loaf of bread!

She got blouses. She got slacks, skirts... She put that blouse back because this blouse was prettier and would go better with those slacks. Sondra may not have had the same fashion sense as Mom, but she was going to be able to dress nice to Mom’s way of thinking.

She bought clothes for Sondra just like she did back to school clothes shopping for me. She bought underwear, bras, socks… I don’t think that she bought shoes but if Sondra had been with us to try them on, she would have likely gotten shoes too. Mom probably gave her money for shoes.

So anyway, Mom had Sondra clothed from head to toe and clothed in a pretty way. She tried to buy things that were nice, things that she herself would like. She bought clothes for Sondra from our favorite place to shop just as she did for her own family.

We never had a bunch of money when I was growing up. When I went to college a bit later, Dad gave me five dollars a week for spending money and I managed on that through four years of college. We never had an abundance of money but Mom was willing to spend what she had to help out our neighbors when they needed help. She didn’t skimp on that help. She did for our neighbor just as she did for her own family.

So, this is one of my favorite memories of Mom. It shows Mom’s giving and loving nature. It also shows how she is mindful of those folks who others may tend to look over and forget. Mom has been looking out for and caring for people from early childhood. She has been as generous as possible when it comes to her limited resources, but most importantly of all, she has always been generous with her love. I reckon that Mom has an unlimited supply of love. She loves well and she is well-loved!