Mother`s Day

Happy Mother's Day! The biggest surprise I ever got for Mother's Day came two years ago in 2010. It was a day early, but it was sooo wonderful.

Tyler had been in Haiti for more than three months with the 82nd Airborne following the earthquake that hit in January. I remember him calling in the middle of the afternoon on the Monday following. "Hey, Mom..." in his usual nothing's-happening-here voice. I took the bait and asked him if he was on his way somewhere. "Just sittin' on my duffel bag with the guys."

After that, we had very limited contact. Cell phone coverage was limited, and letters or packages took a very long time to make the journey. Though it wasn't exactly a war zone, it looked like one. Aftershocks, rubble and filthy conditions made the situation difficult.

As the deployment was winding down, contact again became almost nonexistent as they prepared to come home. We kept waiting for word, wondering when the call would come.

So on Saturday before Mother's Day, my husband got the coffee started first thing. Before we had a cup, he asked me if I had seen what he did in Tyler's room. He fibbed and said he'd hung some pictures. I thought to myself, of all the things he could do around the house, picture hanging wouldn't be the top of my list. Up the stairs I went to see my husband's version of home decorating.

I flipped open the door expecting to see pictures hung far too high on the wall. What I found was a tall, lanky man-boy, just back from a third world disaster zone, sound asleep in his bed. "Tyler, oh Tyler. You're here!" 

"Mornin', Mom." Just like that. Just as though he had never been more than a stone's throw from home. 

To all moms, happy Mother's Day. Whether your kids are near or far, enjoy them today and every day.