I am the youngest of 8 children. I have four brothers, and three sisters. I have been an aunt since I was two years old. My siblings, and nieces and nephews and I, sadly, were not always the most ... pleasant ... people to live with. But, through EVERYTHING that we put my parents through, (and trust me, it was a LOT) my parents stayed by our sides the whole time.
I could go on about the many things that my siblings and I put my parents through. But this is not an entry about us. This is an entry about my mom and dad. Suffice to say, they were put through a lot, and somehow, they made good adults out of all of us. (some may beg to differ ... LOL but alas ...)
From some of my earliest memories, my mom would attend sports events that we, her children, were in. Baseball and soccer were the ones I remember most. Mom went to as many games as she could manage, and somehow, that turned out to be most of them. There were times when we had 4 of us at one time, playing a game of baseball, on different teams. She would make her rounds from diamond to diamond, cheering her kids on! Daddy would attend games as he could, depending on his work schedule. They both supported us 100% with our sports, and we KNEW it.
When I was in grade school, mom wanted to be more involved with the school, so she did a program called F.A.M.E. (Fine Arts Mini Experience). She would go into the different classrooms, and put on a presentation about famous composers, or famous artists from the past. I would ALWAYS look forward to her presentations, because she made them so FUN! I remember learning about Chopin .. the famous composer. She wrote the word "SHOW" under a small picture of a theater she drew, and another she wrote "PAN" under a picture of a frying pan .. so that we could have a better idea of the "american" way of saying his name. Then she played a tape of a few of his most famous songs. I was in 3rd grade, and to this day I remember that. She later became PTA president, and worked very hard to help our school excel in many ways.
Daddy worked full time while I was growing up, and showed such a wonderful example of working hard for his family. His job offered a wonderful vacation package, which allowed him to spend weeks at a time vacationing with his family. He would never just take vacation time to simply sit around the house and take "ME" time. If we were not GOING somewhere, he would join right in with whatever we were doing. There were many summer memories of water fights (usually STARTED by daddy! LOL) that would last for at least an hour (normally, until mom got too fed up and made us stop! HA!). Daddy would hog the hose, and spray us all if we got near and tried to take it from him. If, somehow we succeeded in taking the hose, he would get a bucket and run inside the house and fill it up with the kitchen sink, and run out and dump it on one of us! (THAT would tork mom off LOL)
Mom and dad would take us on fantastic camping vacations. We would pile into the van (yes, most of us 8) and drive around the west coast, camping along the way. We would go to visit family, showing us the importance of always keeping in touch with our family. The vacation memories I have built up with my parents, are priceless.
They loved our friends, and always allowed our home to be a 'hang out' spot. Many of my friends called my parents mom and dad. And I know there are many of my brothers' friends that did the same.
Church was, and still is, of high importance in my parents' lives. Sadly, most of us didnt feel the same while growing up. I know that we could have, and SHOULD have respected their views more while we were living with them, but, sigh, we did not. They DID however plant a seed in our hearts. Some of my siblings and I are now active church goers as adults. I am truly grateful for the foundation they set for me. My faith in God is very strong, and my testimony is unshakable. And I have my mom and dad to thank for this.
I call my mom and dad a few times a day. They are in California, I am in Arizona. My mom laughs sometimes, saying that she talks to ME more than she talks with some of my siblings that live in the same city as them. I can honestly say that my mom and dad are some of the best FRIENDS I have ever had, and ever will have. I know I can tell them anything. They have set an example to me, of what a parent should be. I took them for granted when I was younger, as just about every child does. But, I am so thankful that they were still THERE for me when I needed them. And they are still here for me when I need them now. Even through everything I put them through while growing up (and trust me, as I said above, it WAS a lot!) they have showed me that family comes first, no matter WHAT.
When I grow up, I wanna be just like them. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment