Your presence, dear children, is present enough.

I have heard talk of children and children who talk of visiting their mothers as a burdensome chore. Interacting with the being who birthed them becomes boring, even painful. That’s never been the case for me with my mother. But I understand that not all mothers try to be good mothers. And I know from experience that even the mothers who try so hard to do the right thing at all times sometimes fall short of the mark. When that happens, we can only rely on unconditional love to carry us through. We forgive ourselves. We ask for forgiveness without expectation of any particular outcome. And just keep loving.

In recent years I have learned to be OK with the fact that my grown children aren’t intensely interested in everything I do. In their frequent indifference I see the arrival of a new order of things in which I am neither central nor essential to their existence. In many ways it’s a relief and a joy to have raised independent individuals ready to soar on their own. If I was the most exciting and pivotal element in their world, Houston, I think we’d have a problem.

So, dear children, when you invite me in, for a moment of laughter, celebration or even sorrow, this is a gift beyond measure. And when our eyes meet, I know that the love we feel for each other is far from indifferent.

Bonus Inspiration:  I usually cover Writerly topics at http://cyndiperkins.com  But I’m sure there are fellow scribes out there wondering if it’s Mother’s Day, Mothers Day or Mothers’ Day.  AP style (my preference) is Mother’s day with the apostrophe. I’ve used two of the variations in social media postings today. Here are the cases made for each variation:  http://www.betterwritingskills.com/tip-w011.html