Dynamite comes in small packages, but so does the good stuff!
Mom Lily was my best friend. I did not have a sister, only four brothers. Was that the reason we had such a close bond?
Don't get me wrong, that doesn't mean I got away with anything! My tiny Mom let me know in no uncertain terms when I did wrong, which wasn't often when I was small. I was the first grandchild and niece, and was spoilt by my grandparents, aunts, and uncles, so there was no time to be naughty;)
I won't say anything about my teenage years though!
Always a mother first, and then a friend.
My Dad was the gentle giant, Mom dished out the punishment. A lecture from her was enough to make me remorseful and promise to never repeat that wrong!
Once over those awful teen years - no longer a child, thinking I knew it all - and then a grown woman, we became best friends again!
Growing up one of my favourite memories is of our baking sessions, more like bakeathons. Mom and my Ouma did not play when it came to baking. Cookie tins had to be filled, so they baked large quantities, and always more than just one type of cookie. They were both queens of Milk Tart and Lemon Meringue Pies. I for sure learnt from the best, could not even read yet but would stand on the chair and ask my Ouma for her 'Diseppie' book. Pastry and cookies had to be just the right thickness and colour.
The baking sessions continued after I got married and it was just Mom and me. Her balance deteriorated towards the end, but she would tell me in an accusing tone that the biscuit tins were empty! She would sit at the dining room table, roll cookie dough into little balls, press them down with a fork, or press out pastry into pans. I still love baking, in fact, the kitchen still is one of my favourite playgrounds, as it was when I was a child.
Small in stature, but big on personality, and very determined!
My absolute favourite memories though, are of the times we went to live shows. Mom absolutely loved it! Her brother worked in theatre, and that's where our love for live entertainment was born. That's not him in that first photo! That was at the laidback Barnyard Theatre which mostly hosted music tribute shows. I regularly booked a table of ten, and friends would join us for an evening of light entertainment, music, food, and laughter. This photo was taken at a show with an African theme, Diamonds and Dust. My sister-in-law was a smoker and we made friends with another group at intermission in the smoker's lounge. The guy in the African outfit was such fun, and more than happy to pose with Mom!
I'm adding a bonus memory of Mom's favourite pastime - painting, not portraits, no, walls! Mom was forever painting her cottage. She was a perfectionist and did the job from scratch all by herself.
Mom's painting career came to an end at the age of seventy when she decided to paint my kitchen. We gave her the go-ahead but warned her not to climb up the ladder if she was alone. My housekeeper only comes three days per week.
I called one day to see how things were going. When Mom answered I knew something was wrong. I immediately thought she had fallen, but that was not the problem
She had covered all the surfaces with newspaper, my glass-top stove included! She was a daring little lady and stood on top of the cupboard surfaces, but forgot about the stove.
As she stepped on it, she heard something shattering underneath her little feet!
She looked like a remorseful child ready to burst into tears by the time we got home, but we were only too happy that Mom was ok, and had not fallen! A good excuse to get a new stove, my sweet man told her <3
Memoir Monday is a fabulous writing prompt by @ericvancewalton and has helped us store treasured memories for the last 46 weeks already. I missed some of them but have been going back to catch up, as with the question What is one of your favorite memories of your mother? is one of those.
I could not only talk about one! My excuse is that I'm already in my seventh decade, and Mom reached nine, so that is a ton of wonderful memories!
Some people believe that in a spiritual sense, babies choose their parents before they are born. If that is so, I for sure chose the very best!
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Artwork by @artywink
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Artwork by @artywink