some may know her as…
a teacher.
a daughter.
an aunt.
a friend.
a wife.
the tiny cute lady with big hair.
the woman who smiles no matter what.
the friendly voice in a world of darkness.
the neighbor that loves her front porch.
the lady in church that likes to sing loudly.
but me, i know her as mom.
today i want to introduce to my readers the strongest, most resilient person i have ever met, and thus one of the most important people in my life and in my story: my mama, Melissa Noble.
everyone that knows her knows that she is a dime. a gem. a treasure to hold on to.
not many people can say that they are truly friends with one, or both, of their parents. many people don’t have great relationships with their parents. on the other hand, some people are fortunate enough to be able to call their mom and/or dad their friend. my mom happens to be my best friend.
we have endured a lot together. like a heck of a lot. looking back on my childhood, it was quite traumatic. a lot happened that i really honestly thought was normal for any child to go through, but my goodness it was not normal. and this was no one’s fault, it was just the cards my family was dealt. there is absolutely no way i could have survived my childhood without the strength and guidance that my mom chose to give my whole family. she held us all together, and she made things seem okay even when they were as far from okay as they could be.
my brother and my dad both battled severe mental illnesses. through manic breaks, suicide attempts, and overall low times in life, my mom was there. she rescued everyone in my family, always. she took care of my dad when he was unstable. she took care of my brother when he was being placed in a psychiatric hospital. she comforted me when i didn’t know what was going on. she knew how to love each of us individually just as we needed.
when i was 15 and a sophomore in high school, my dad unexpectedly passed away. this was a shock to everyone. once again, my mom held us together. my mom made sure that both my brother and i made it through that horrible time in our lives, as well as getting herself through it too. i had no clue one tiny petite human could have so much inward strength.
there are many instances that i look back on and wonder how my family survived what we did and endured what we did, and then i am reminded that my mom loved us so deeply that she would do anything for us. she would put us before herself in order for us to move forward. most of the time she put our needs before her own.
the love that my mom has for her children and her family mirrors the love that the Lord has for us. my mom loves unceasingly. she loves when people don’t necessarily deserve it, but when she knows they need it most. is that not how the Lord loves us day in and day out? when we don’t deserve it, there He is – loving us intentionally and wholly. and how incredibly comforting it is to know that that love is always there, all we have to do is accept it.
mama – you are my biggest inspiration. i can only hope and pray to be like you when i grow up. i strive to love people the way you love, and to continue living every single day no matter the circumstances that we are in, just as you have and continue to do. i love you more than you could ever know.
xoxo
mags.
