Is 80 years young today! Happy Birthday, Mom. I wish I could be there with you to celebrate.
My mother, Hazel B Lael, is one perky lady. You’d never guess she’d hit the big 8-0 to meet her–she’s sharp and funny and always busy with her many projects. She has one of the best senses of humor I’ve ever run across, and still does the crossword puzzle every day–probably in the flowing turquoise ink she has always favored. She reads and reads and reads–I got my love of books and my ability with words from her. When I was young, and always writing stories, she never told me to go outside and play. I think she always believed I could be a writer, and that belief was powerful. She sewed Halloween costumes every year, made the best chocolate chip cookies and Snickerdoodles in three states, and if we were sick in the night, she always came to offer consolation and smear our chests with Vicks–to this day, that smell reminds me of her and brings me comfort if I’m under the weather. I still hear “The Night Before Christmas” in her warm voice. She filled stockings on Christmas Eve, made me go to Sunday school, and loved all four of us with her whole heart–all the while worrying that she wasn’t doing it right.
You did it all right, Mama.
Here’s hoping you have a wonderful day and 80 MORE birthdays.
We’ll hit Auntie’s Bookstore when I get home. 🙂
I love you.
Today is also my brother Jerry’s birthday. Have a happy one, big guy. I love you, too.
