Mothering Sunday Memories

When I was young my Mum ran the Sunday school at our local church, so on the Saturday before we went picking daffodils, with permission from the farmer, I should add. This is when I learnt that daffs are slimy and not nice to pick in huge quantities - I think it was something like 150 bunches of 5, it still makes me cringe even though it was 30 years ago...

My Mum didn't like Mothering Sunday, it was too commercialised (even then) so we were never allowed to give presents or cards, she complained that she had to get a card for her mother and mother in law...

I just get annoyed at all the over advertising of what was a religious (or even pagan) festival for the beginning of Spring (if I've got it right).

I used to sit in front of the telly on a Saturday afternoon knitting or sewing with Mum. We watched in horror when the stadium caught fire at Bradford, we shouted at the wrestling of Big Daddy, and we watched any number of bad films on BBC2.

We went shopping to craft shops over the Pennines on the first day the roads were open after the snow. We argued in the shops who was going to have which cross stitch kit (she always won !)

She encouraged me to knit and get a job knitting for a local wool shop when I was 16.

And now today she has been gone twenty years.

It is hard to believe the passing of time, nearly half my life (give or take a few months). I had a very strange feeling when I realised that I have known my friends from uni longer than I knew my Mum. It also bothers me that her anniversary is always close to Mothering Sunday when everyone expects you to have a mother and buy things for her.
I feel so tempted to shout out that I haven't got a Mum any more, I wonder if I would be so anti the day if it wasn't for her bad timing, it just makes her passing worse with the constant reminders each year.

So for all of you with Mothers out there remember they will not be with you forever make the most of your time with them.

And for those who are Mumless I hope you manage to remember the good times without too many tears.

And now I think I'm going to find a cheering dvd to watch, do some knitting (no surprise there) and think happy thoughts .... of what might have been, who would have finished the wedding ring shawl first, the exciting yarn filled holidays that could have been, and the fights over books and patterns......