Tough Act to Follow

Yesterday I went to Greenville, NC for a meeting that included a nice lunch.  By the time I got home and picked Carter up from school it was apparent that something had not agreed with me.  I told Carter I was going to lie down and I went to bed and slept for 20 hours.

Some time in my sick sleeping Russ came in to check on me and I apparently said, “I have not written my blog, please post something.”  I guess it is true that if you do something everyday it becomes such a strong habit that even in my sicken stupor I was worried about missing a post.

Russ hardly had time with work and now having to come up with dinner, since I had just taken to bed, so he passed the blog responsibility on to Carter.  I had no idea until I woke up this morning and read all the sweet comments on facebook and the blog what a heartfelt poem Carter had written to me.

I am happy to say that what ever was wrong with me was not life threatening, but it certainly elicited the kindest message from my child that I will cherish always.  Teenage years are not always the easiest with parents and kids.  We just don’t always tell each other the good things as often as we should.

I can remember some really good knock-down-drag-out fights with my own parents.  I wish that I had written them such a sincere message to tell them how much I love them when I was that age.  I know now as a mother how much those little gestures mean.

In the spirit of my kind daughter I want to tell my parents how wonderful they have been.  The one thing I always knew is that my parents have always been there supporting me and my sisters in all that we do.  Knowing there are people who love you and are cheering for you all the time is the most valuable reassurance a human can have.

We tell our children all the time how much we love them, but having your child say it back is even more special, especially if they are a teenager.  I hope my parents aren’t mad that I am not half as good a child as my child is.  I know it’s never too late to say I love you, but I’m sure that it would have gone a long way if I were a nicer teenager.