I made the above Mother’s Day video a few years back. I’ve posted it here so you can share it with others, if you wish. To show it at a church or other public gathering, click here.
Mom was twenty when I was born—twenty times as old as me. But when I turned ten, I suddenly realized, she was only three times as old as me. And when I turned twenty, I thought, she would be only two times as old as me. “Soon, she’ll be younger than me!” (Math wasn’t my strong suit.) By the time I got to college I’d finally figured out that Mom would always be exactly twenty years older than me. Which meant she would always have twenty years more life experience than me.
It was like hiking with a tall friend: You come to a fork in the road, behind which is a hill. You can’t see what the two paths do beyond that hill, so how can you choose which one to take? You ask a tall friend who can see beyond the hill. Despite the fact that she was only 5’2″, Mom was my “tall friend.”
Still, she was experiencing new things too. When I was six, she was learning how to be the mother of a six-year-old. When I was sixteen, she was learning how to survive being the mother of a sixteen-year-old. Not to mention all the other stuff life throws at women.
My perspective changed when I realized Mother’s Day wasn’t just a celebration of who my mom was, it was a celebration of who she was becoming. The only thing that remained the same from start to finish was her love. And when she passed away, I remembered that no matter what changes she was going through, she always loved me.
That inspired my short play I Always Knew You Loved Me, as well as the short film version above about a trio of young adults and their seemingly-unrelated Mom stories. To read or perform the play, click here. And again, to share the video publicly, click here.
I love you, Mom. Every version of you. And I’m glad I never caught up with you. I mean, who wants to be older than their mom, right?
Moms never leave us they stay with us in spirit always and shine their love down on us,
<3
Beautiful, Mitch!
Thanks, Wynne!
So lovely.
Thank you, Jean.
A wonderful way to honour your mom.
Thank you, Randy.
Niente manca più di una madre .
Grazie bellissimo video ♥️
Piacere mio, Paola.
💕🌷
A precious tribute! Love it! Sorry, she passed away, but may your special memories bring comfort as you always carry her in your heart. <3
Thank you, Carolyn.
What a touching tribute! Your mom would be proud of the person you’ve become.
Why, thank you, Sweta.
What a beautiful and heartfelt tribute—funny, tender, and deeply moving. It captures the evolving journey of motherhood so well. Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure, Nelson.
Thanks for providing the prospective touchstones. I’m sorry your Mom is gone (from Earth, more or less, maybe) but am happy for your relationship as I am with your tribute. My mother died many years ago (young). Mothers are extraordinary, aren’t they?
They are indeed.
This will be my first Mother’s Day without my mom, who passed in October. This was a loving tribute and a potent metaphor. Thank you.
My pleasure, Ken. And my condolensces on the loss of your mother.
You knew your mother loved you-no matter what. That’s a wonderful testimony. Even better-she learned to love God thanks to a son who loved her and the Almighty who knew her heart. 🙂
<3
Kudos to you, awesome son
Aw, thanks, L.G.
reply cora
Well done-she must have been quite a lovely Mom.
Aw, Mitch, this one made me cry. And now, for your technologically challenged blogging friend, how do I send it to my children?
You can’t really send it, Annie. But you can send them a link to this blog post. Just copy the URL and paste it. You can also add the link to a Facebook or other social media posts.
Mom was 30 when I was born, I sure would like to see 30 again, but life experience is better today than close to half of my life was then. Mom always knew what to do. Happy mother’s day!
Lovely post. This was sweet.
Thank you so much.
I totally knew they were siblings. This truly warmed my heart. Thank you for sharing, Mitch!
My pleasure, trE!
I think we tend to forget that it’s our parents first time living, too. They’re learning as they go just as much as we are as children. Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers in the world.
Sweet. My mother was not demonstrative, but I knew I, her baby, was special. I was born in her 39th birthday, and she always told me I was her best birthday present.
<3
My mother was rather strict and reserved, a characteristic she inherited from her own upbringing, but she always did the best she could for me.
I’m sure that describes many mothers, Susanne. Glad you can remember her with a healthy perspective like that.
That Maths and emotions combination, I loved that choice of writing style.
A mother child relationship is pure. It’s one of sweetest thing about being human.
You love your mother. I also love my mother.❤️❤️
Such a wonderful post, Mitch. Thank you.
My pleasure, Tim.
Loved this post, thanks Mitch, now I’m crying remembering my ama and all the little things she did for us, which I couldn’t appreciate then as much as I do now. Enjoyed the video too 🙂
My pleasure, Rosie.
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Lovely and timely
Thank you, Gerry.