The hardest job...

Today I want to reflect on the hardest working people in the world. The ones who work even when they're sick. The ones who work seven days a week. The ones who selflessly pour their lives into the lives of other people.

That is, of course, a Mom.

Now I know there are plenty of Dads out there who provide the daily care for their child, but that's still somehow different than being a Mom. While Dads labor in child rearing, Moms labored in childbirth and somehow always maintain a special connection to the one who grew inside her.

It breaks our hearts to hear a Mom talk of her child that died before she ever got to hold it or hear its cry or of a child that has gone astray. That bond that forms in the womb can never be broken.

I don't care if you're ridiculously wealthy or dirt poor; being a Mom is hard work. It's a 24/7 job; wrought with emotion even long after the child has grown and gone.

A Mom nurtures young minds; answering the same questions over and over. A Mom's special bond allows her to empathize with her child in any circumstance.

Yes, being a Mom is hard work.

I remember the days of Diane pushing Joseph's stroller around the block; talking to him about all of the things they saw and heard. Joseph would call out, "Dis," as he pointed at whatever caught his fancy at the moment; anxious for Mom to tell him the name of what he pointed at or explain what he was seeing.

"Dis...Dis...Dis," became the constant mantra as they walked. Diane patiently named and explained everything he pointed to; seeing every "Dis" as an opportunity to expand his world and remind him how special he was to her.

So now; as we prepare for Matthew's college graduation, I have been reflecting on just what a hard job Diane had for all those years. She homeschooled the boys throughout their elementary, junior high and high school years. She cared for their every need; all the while caring for mine, as well.

Yes, Moms certainly have the hardest job in the world. It can be the most rewarding and the most painful; sometimes both at the same time.

The job becomes even more difficult when a Mom is called upon to mother her own Mom. Diane's Mom celebrates her 90th birthday today. That's a milestone very few reach. The hard realities of turning 90 include the fact that she can no longer do everything she used to do for herself.

Lola has lived with us for over thirteen years. That's an awfully long time for a man to have to live with his mother-in-law. It's a long time for an adult daughter to live with her mother, too. Even though Lola (not her real name, but the one I have called her for over a quarter century) is still fairly independent considering her age; she still relies on Diane to get her to the store, the doctor, the dentist, etc.; and Diane patiently waits as she takes longer and longer to get ready with each passing week . Diane also makes sure she takes the correct meds at the correct time each day and generally performs many of the monitoring tasks that one expects of the Mom.

So, today - even though it isn't Mother's Day - I am moved to reflect on just what a special calling it is to be a Mom. Particularly the very special Mom I have the joy of living with each day; the one who takes care of me, our sons and her own mother.

There can certainly be no job harder than being Mom and I am blessed to have spent the past 25 years with the best.