Mother’s Day – 10 May 2020

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all mothers and women who serve as mother figures in the lives of children and adults within their spheres of influence.  Amid the Covid 19 pandemic which has nearly paralyzed our country, your incalculable labor of love defies its recipients’ abilities to describe and express thanksgiving.  Today, the words, superlative, magnanimous, unique, exceedingly abundant and invaluable are never trite.  Do they adequately characterize who mothers are and what they do in the shadows and on the sidelines to enrich the lives of their families?  A few years ago, a human resource professional wrote a job description for mothers that yielded ten single-spaced pages.  Humbly, I hope you receive the genuine and heartfelt gratitude of the often-undeserving persons who on most days devour the bread of life and gulp the living water which your unfailing love yields.

This year, I am particularly thankful to the countless mothers who are nurses, physicians, hospital and nursing home workers, first responders, grocery and convenience store employees, sanitation personnel, postal and delivery workers, fire department and law enforcement officers and who occupy any other essential positions.  Your commitment to your families and work ethic support millions of other American households.  Your duty and faithfulness enable us to provide for our families even as you potentially risk the well-being of your families each day.  As I say to any of the previous persons whom I encounter as occasion warrants, “Many thanks for doing what you do and for helping my family.  Thanks for being here.”  These distinguished mothers could not have imagined that they would one day be a mother to hundreds of millions of people when they first become mothers.  I imagine our nation shares my overwhelming gratitude.

As I write this morning, the latest coronavirus numbers paint a bleak and seemingly unending picture.  The CDC confirms approximately 1.3 million infections and 77,000 deaths in the United States.  These grim numbers mean that thousands of mothers are bereaved on this day of celebration for them.  Others undoubtedly have very heavy hearts as they care for children and other relatives who have contracted this disease.  Within our respective faith traditions and belief systems, let us pause and pray for these women as they bear such unimaginable burdens of loss, fear, bewilderment and grief.  Beyond today’s fitting accolades, I hope our enduring affirmations and kindnesses will empower these mothers “for the living of these days.”

Living in “the valley of the shadow of death” and surviving a pandemic compels you to re-evaluate life and what really has value.  Love, families and friends, in my opinion, comprise life’s most valuable assets.  On this mother’s day, what a most wonderful and incredible gift we have to celebrate individually and collectively the amazing women within our lives without whom we would be poorer.  Thank you, our beloved mothers, for your loyal and unending love which pierces our current darkness and empowers us with hope for the future.