True Love is an Acceptance

 "True Love is an Acceptance "

It was a busy morning, approximately 08:30 am, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9 am. I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking repeatedly at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound.

On examination, it was well-healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his stitches and redressed his wound. While taking care of his wound, we began to engage in conversation. I asked him if he had an important appointment that morning, as he seemed to be in such a hurry.

The gentleman told me no; that he only needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I then inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while already and that she was a victim of Alzheimer Disease.

As we talked, and I finished dressing his wound, I asked if she would be worried if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was; that she had not recognized him for five years now. I was surprised, and asked him. "And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?"

He smiled as he patted my hand and said: "She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is."

I had to hold back my tears as he left. I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought: "That is the kind of love I want in my life."

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be

" True love is like an eternal flame...It will continue to burn for all eternity."

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Eight Lies Of A Mother

Eight Lies Of A Mother

This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we hadn’t enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, Mother often gave me her portion of rice. While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say “Eat this rice, son! I’m not hungry.”
This was Mother’s First Lie.

As I grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house; she hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me a little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make fish soup. While I was eating the soup, mother would sit beside me and eat the what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten, My heart was touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopstick but she immediately refused it and said, “Eat this fish, son! I don’t really like fish.”
This was Mother’s Second Lie.

Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a Match Factory to bring home some used matchboxes, which she filled with fresh matchsticks. This helped her get some money to cover our needs. One wintry night I awoke to find Mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said, “Mother, go to sleep; it’s late: you can continue working tomorrow morning.” Mother smiled and said “Go to sleep, son! I’m not tired.”
This was Mother’s Third Lie.

When I had to sit my Final Examination, Mother accompanied me. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang, I ran to meet her.. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my Mother’s love, Seeing Mother covered with perspiration, I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said “Drink, son! I’m not thirsty!”.
This was Mother’s Fourth Lie.

After Father’s death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job; she had to fund our needs alone. Our family’s life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation. Seeing our family’s condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house came to help us solve our problems big and small. Our other neighbors saw that we were poverty stricken so they often advised my mother to marry again. But Mother refused to remarry saying “I don’t need love.”
This was Mother’s Fifth Lie.

After I had finished my studies and gotten a job, it was time for my old Mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she was steadfast and even sent the money back to me. She said, “I have enough money.”
That was Mother’s Sixth Lie.

I continued my part-time studies for my Master’s Degree. Funded by the American Corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but Mother didn’t want to bother her son; she said to me “I’m not used to high living.”
That was Mother’s Seventh Lie.

In her dotage, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit Mother who was bedridden after an operation. Mother tried to smile but I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but Mother said, “Don’t cry, son! I’m not in pain.”
 That was Mother’s Eighth Lie.

Telling me this, her eighth lie, she died. YES, MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL!

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M – O – T – H – E – R

“M” is for the Million things she gave me,
“O” means Only that she’s growing old,
“T” is for the Tears she shed to save me,
“H” is for her Heart of gold,
“E” is for her Eyes with love-light shining in them,
“R” means Right, and right she’ll always be.

Put them all together, they spell “MOTHER” a word that means the world to me.
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For those of you who are lucky to be still blessed with your Mom’s presence on Earth, this story is beautiful.
For those who aren’t so blessed, this is even more beautiful.
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