10 May 2009

Nellie

Who influenced you most?
I have no trouble answering that question at all.
It was Nellie. Nellie Mae, as a matter of fact.

Of course my Dad was also an influence. But my Dad was absent during much of my formative years. His influence on me was mostly by example...
He and Mom had difficulties, yet they handled them together.
He worked hard, both at home and away, and our family was never hungry or cold.
He was never physically abusive. Inclinations toward mental abuse were so trivial as to be unworthy of examination.
He didn't find another woman and leave my Mom to raise Sis and me.
So through his example I learned much about how to be a man.

But my Mom taught me how to be a human-
She taught me about honor.
She taught me about honesty.
She taught me to treat others as I wanted to be treated.
She taught me that reading was not only important, it could be fun.
She taught me to be curious.
And she taught me the importance of doing a job well.

I am Harlie and Nellie's son, but mostly I am a product of Nellie's gentle coaxing.
She raised two kids who have turned out to be productive, caring citizens, and she did it mostly by herself.

Happy Mother's Day Mom...
I'm proud to point you out and say "That's my Mother".

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank You , That is good to know

CJ said...

GB -

Well, that explains a lot.

It sounds like we had very similar mothers.

The major difference? Mine managed to raise 6 children to be thoughtful, responsible adults.

God bless 'em both.

cjh

jinksto said...

Next time you have a chance give your mom a hug. It's the one thing I miss the most about mine.

My Mom raised three kids alone while working two jobs to support them and going to school. Even then at 15 years old and a general jerk, I could appreciate the effort she spent.

Rita said...

Let's all toast all of our wonderful mothers. How lucky we are.

OlePrairiedog said...

And Nellie spread that gentle coaxing to others. We have some great moms. I'm also proud of mine, and of yours. She did a good job.