This is a day later than I wanted it to be, but yesterday I could not get the blogsite to work for me no matter how many times I tried to send this.

Most of the time on Mother's day I tend to gag on the sugary sweet songs that the kids in our church sing for the mothers present. Why? Well, when I hear words such as:

Mother dear I love you so,
your happy smiling face
Is such a joy to look at,
it makes home a lovely place.

I think of all the times I've hollered at my kids or had a face that surely was not a joy to look at, and the the guilt with a capital G rears its ugly head.

Move on to verse two and the saccharine level rises even higher:

Mother dear, I love you so.
Your lovely, shining eyes
Are just like stars that twinkle
Way up in the bright blue skies.

"Mother Dear I love you So"
Maud Belnap Kimball, 1889–1971

Shoot me now. My older kids, knowing how much I dislike some of the lyrics to these songs would even sing them around the house sarcastically sometimes when I was frustrated. They thought they were pretty funny and I have to admit they were.

On Sunday, however, I watched as Caleb walked to the front of the chapel to sing with all of the children. The first song didn't do much for me. It started:

"Like sunshine in the morning, that changes night to day
Like flowers in the springtime..." Ugh! Another one of those kinds of Mother's Day songs.

Caleb didn't know the words anyway, and was doing his best to lip synch a couple of beats behind everyone else. When they started their second song, however, it brought tears to my eyes. Not that I like it a whole lot better. It too is rather cheesy...

Mother, I love you; mother, I do.
Father in Heaven has sent me to you.
When I am near you, I love to hear you
Singing so softly that you love me too.
Mother I love you, I love you I do.

copyright 1969 by Lorin F. Wheelwright

Ben was smiling and busily signing away following the signs of his older sister Alyssa. He was singing out every once in a while, totally off key as he can't really hear pitches.

Micheline was grinning as she tried to remember the words and got a few of them at the right time, and Caleb was still doing his lip synch routine until he got to the last "Mother I love you, I love you, I do."
He sang it out as he looked my direction and grinned.

I realized this was the first Mother's Day that Caleb has ever had where he had a mother to sing to. For 11 years, he has had other caregivers, but no mama to whom he could say, "Mother, I love you".

When he was mad at me a few weeks ago, he went to his room and flipped through his photo album from China. I asked him if he missed China and wanted to go back. He immediately said "No!" When I asked him why, he gave me a variety of reasons, but his number one reason was "No Baba, no Mama in China."

On future Mother's Days he may harbor feelings of anger or anxiety about his early years or his first mother or even toward me, but this year, we both enjoyed his first Mother's Day and his first ever opportunity on this day to say "Mother, I love you." I love you too, kid.

For other Mother's Day experiences, read:

A Mother's Day Breakthrough

A Mother's Day Without a Hitch?