Charger Mom - Football Season

It's that time of year again and football season is in full on attack, one kid is fighting a cold, two more are fighting for the privilege of attending the game and another one just wants to be held. Great Gramma is begging for attention while my daughter and I chase around, wishing we had time to give attention to anything other than everyone else. Life at our house continues, rampant with dogged remarks, rushed moments and harried phrases that need finishing.

Did you ever feel like you were on a treadmill going just a half a mile faster than you could run?

When I realized a few weeks back that I'd be taking care of my mom for a while, I thought it might be nice to incorporate a few special "moments" in that care taking time. It may have been possible for the first few days, but shortly after, those moments became a random thought exclusive of ignorance. As we rushed from Doctor place to Doctor place, I realized the likeness of "special" was missing.

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So... lacking the ability to forget about my desire to make this time special, I stopped by my Dad's place and invited him and my nephew and his family to dinner. The world stopped turning for an hours worth of minutes as we attempted to eat at a family favorite diner. My mother's favorite place to go for food, costs an arm, two legs, a kidney and half a lung for a meal, when she eats less than two ounces and can't keep any of it down. But, paying it becomes a privilege, when I realize any monumental bite she takes may be her last.

A trivial moment in time for the average person, but this moment in time is precious, as my mother struggles to eat just one more bite of food. Then it occurred to me, during that meal. No matter how trivial, each moment we spend with mom... now, is special, because it may be the last one we have the privilege of spending with her.

Football season came in with such a rush of "to-dos" that I barely recognized the colors changing on the trees. The season was headlong into full force before I realized that if I leave the windows open, I can hear the boys practicing football on the field just south of the house. I've always loved listening to their "heave" and "lunges" as they cheer the boys of fall in their favorite sport. Football.

Am I a charger-mom? No, I'm not the mother of a prized football player, my boys chose not to play the autumn sport, but rather instead to run the courses in other sports. I am however a mom who charges in where angels fear to tread when the need arises, toting another barge, carrying my light high to light the world, and daring on the last moment to make a difference in the lives of teenagers, young adults and children everywhere. A life well lived is one that moves through each day, dedicated to the decision to live well, under any circumstances and find the happiness that comes with each moment, no matter how difficult the moment maybe.

I'm the mom in the checkout line spending my last dollar on toilet paper, smiling. Because I know that God is aware that's my last dollar, and he'll send me another when I need it. ;)