Finally..... My final respects

Last year I half joked about not being able to think things through... alluding to my inability to take things seriously and blaming my mother for it seeing how all that I am today can be directly attributed to how she raised me. This morning as I struggle to hold back a legion of emotions that are threatening to explode and overwhelm me, I can only smile bitterly as I consider the irony of it all. If only I could be half the man that she raised me to be.

Anyway, one August day last year, I started what follows below....a letter to my mother, and meant to post it as my middle of the year "Mother's day" post. It had occurred to me that "Mother's Day", while being a really good idea, was really shortchanging our mother's who most certainly deserve to be recognized every single day for the hard work they've done and for their undying love... I never got to finish it.... and even more sadly, I never got to send it.

This Mother's Day, I'd like to dedicate this, perhaps my final post on this blog, to the greatest woman I know. There are not enough words in my vocabulary to give a fitting enough tribute to her. Those who may have had the good fortune to have met and known her will bear testimony to this:- That 'Seeking neither fame nor fortune, she gave of her wealth, her time, and her self, time and time again, in ways and manner that a thousand words from me, or from anyone else for that matter, would never justify. In her kind, soft-spoken but firm manner, she affected many a life in a way that only a sincere soul could and left an indelible that eternity itself will never erase.'

I owe her my life, my love and my gratitude. I will forever be indebted to you mum. Your passing may have been sudden and unexpected but you've left a surplus in our lives that will abound for the rest of our lives. May we honor your memories in everything that we do.