I am so blessed to be in a house that has a chapel with consecrated Eucharist every day, every hour, every minute, meaning Jesus is present there and available to me whenever needed. I know I do not take advantage of it as much as I should. But sometimes I go in for just a few minutes when I need a renewal of spirit, and I sing the words each of my talented brothers have sung in high school, "Fill my cup, let it overflow.... fill my cup, let it overflow.... fill my cup, let it overflow, let it overflow with love," and with a few prayers, I do feel filled with love and patience, and am ready to open the door and get back to it. (not to mention the good feeling I get whenever I think of my brothers! <3)
I mention that today because my cup has been filled in a literal sense.
Today is my mom's birthday... Happy Birthday, Mom!!!!! I remember quite often the post I wrote last year here in Ghana on the eve of my mother's birthday, about the gift of life, how precious it is, and how ending it, whether before birth or after is equally wrong. I was thinking this morning, how will I ever top that one? Well, here's my best shot:
The other day I requested that on Sunday(today), my mom's birthday, we sing "Immaculate Mary" at the closing of mass in honor of my earthly mother, Jean. Well, that was all it took for Sister Stan to get into the party mode again. "It's Mommy's birthday on Sunday?? We have to celebrate!!" The mass today was said for my mother and all day, Sister has been making preparations for a big celebration. I thanked her for thinking so much of my mother, and she said, :She is my mom too, she is a mom to us all... she gave us you!!" Eucharistic Adoration today will be in honor of my mother as well. It's really beautiful!!
At lunch, Sister had me give an account of my mother's life, how she wanted to become a reverend sister, how she gave of herself to help my grandmother when 2 late, unplanned for sons came along, how my mother wanted to go to Quito, Ecuador for the summer and met my father at his house for Spanish lessons, and how they fell in love, got married, had 8 children, 36 grandchildren (plus 6 in heaven <3) and continued to live a life of giving as a mother, by teaching, working at a soup kitchen, and much more. Then Sister had the kids try to retell the story I told about my...oops... our mother and two of them, Alice and Sammy, did a really good job!!
After lunch I was in the dining hall and Mary Clare comes running in with a huge, huge smile on her face and says "Come... come and see!!" She can hardly talk and goes running back into the kitchen. So I run in and she is jumping and points to the back door. So I go and, half expecting to see my mother standing there, I look outside and see the 2 cows, some chickens, the water running out of the spicket, the dogs... I almost turn to Mary Clare and say, "What???" when it hits me... water running out of the spicket... water running... running water... AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!! All of the sudden, there is Sister Stan standing next to me and hugging me and screaming," Look what a gift Mommy gave us!!!"
Fill my cup indeed... Fill my cup with the gift of water!!!
So I go running to the bedrooms to see if the water flows from the sink and shower, and it does!!
Now, to explain, this is water from the Sang Village, who charges us an arm and a leg for the water. It has been a hard and stressful battle for Sister to get them to allow water to come here, and for months she has been fighting with the village and the workers to lay the pipe and open the tap. So, while we have water (yea!!!!!) it comes at a high price. A well would be the ultimate answer, and plans for that are in the making I believe, but this is a joyous day indeed, and we are so elated and feel blessed to be able to simply turn on the tap and see water flow. Amen!!! Halleluiah!!!
So, thanks, Mom! I am to tell you that you have just about doubled your number of grandchildren!! You now may hold the world record for being a grandmother of 82 children!! The children here marvel at the thought that someone so far away, who has never met them, loves them so much. In truth, there are many, many people far away who love these children and, it seems so little, but all I can say is thank you.
Tonight there will be singing and dancing in honor of our mother back in Buffalo, with cake and pop and many, many happy children!! I know this celebration is being echoed in Buffalo with my family, and although I wish I could be there with them and hug my mother in person, I am happy to be here, celebrating her life with my new family and sharing my love for her with them.
Happy birthday, Mom! xo
