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                  Today marks six years since my momma has gone to be with Jesus. Six years. On one hand, it’s hard to believe it has been so long since she has been a part of my life. On the other it seems as though an eternity has passed since I was able to hug her, laugh with her, or ask her advice. 

My Mom (Marilyn) and Me
 
Please indulge me as I take some time to celebrate who she was and what she meant to so many people.
 
For those who didn’t get the chance to meet her, I’m sorry. You missed out on knowing a woman who made everyone feel as though they were her best friend. You missed out on a confidant who would drive 8 hours simply to help you figure out a problem that seemed to big for a mere phone call. She was a woman of God; refined as silver in His fire until He could see His reflection on her face.                
 From her I gained a love for many of my favorite things: chocolate, coloring, oldies, driving and The Andy Griffith Show. There were few things over which my mom was possessive, but you certainly did not want to get between her and her chocolate.   Every Christmas she would treat herself to a new box of Crayolas (it’s her fault I’m a crayon-snob) and a Christmas coloring book. She and I would spend hours filling in the pages. She painstakingly outlined, shaded and blended colors. The results were perfectly decorated Christmas trees and Santas. One of my most vivid memories of my mom is her donning a baseball cap and sitting behind the wheel of her red, convertible Cavalier blasting the oldies station and zooming down the interstate to visit friends, relatives, or on one of our many hour-each-way trips to Charleston for the sole purpose of pampering ourselves with Death by Chocolate, our dessert of choice. The Andy Griffith Show had an almost constant presence in our house. She and I shared many hours watching the episodes we had seen a hundred times. To this day, I know a disturbing amount about this 60’s sit-com.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                Marilyn’s Gallery in Progress                                                                                      The Finished Product
               
            From our yearly Thanksgiving trips to letting my brother, some friends and me loose on the living room wall armed with paint and stencils, my mom was always striving to get the most from life.
Often, when I was in High School and Mom, being very ill, spent most the day in bed, I would come home from my after school job to discover one of my girlfriends stretched out on the bed beside her eating brownies straight from the pan and watching I Love Lucy reruns. 

Margie (my 2nd mom), Lisa (my best friend), Me, Mom
 
She was strong, stubborn and as loving as they come. You would never know when she wasn’t feeling well and she would rarely ask for help. She wore a smile through every five- hour chemotherapy session, spending her time encouraging the other patients, the nurses, even the doctors. 

Most of all, she was a woman who loved her God and her family with a fierceness I have rarely seen in others. 

I miss her everyday. God has been faithful to heal my heart where it was broken from her death, but I will never get over my desire for her to still be present in my life. Her influence remains strong and her faith, strength and grace will be an everlasting legacy.

To get a glimpse into her life and heart, read these lyrics by Nichole Nordeman in her song Legacy.

I don’t mind if you’ve got something nice to say about me
And I enjoy an accolade like the rest
You could take my picture and hang it in a gallery
Of all who’s who and so-n-so’s that used to be the best
At such’n’such … it wouldn’t matter much

I won’t lie, it feels alright to see your name in lights
We all need an ‘Atta boy’ or ‘Atta girl’
But in the end I’d like to hang my hat on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world

I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me? 
                                                                                                                 Mom and my Brother (Mike) Pre-prom

Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
blessed your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy

I don’t have to look too far or too long awhile
To make a lengthly list of all that I enjoy
It’s an accumulating trinket and a treasure pile
Where moth and rust, thieves and such will soon enough destroy

Mom with Morgan and Paul Ryan                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
Not well traveled, not well read, not well-to-do or well bred
Just want to hear instead, “Well Done” good and faithful one…