Mother’s Day

Larry M. Jones

There are few instincts, traits or emotions that are as strong, overpowering and without limits as those of motherhood. Each of us has witnessed stark and dramatic examples of the heroic actions taken by mothers to protect their young.

One of the most unusual that my old eyes have seen occurred several years back as I was shredding some tall grass and weeds in the field behind my house. Half asleep in mid-afternoon, I monotonously made round after round. I had seen a small (about 1/3 grown) cottontail rabbit on several occasions as it scurried away from my mower and darted into the tall weeds. All of a sudden it sped past my tractor with a large coach whip snake (prairie racer) in hot pursuit. The snake was huge, probably more than seven feet in length and as large around as my forearm. In addition to big, he was equally as fast. I shut down the tractor to watch this dramatic chase. The snake quickly scooped up the rabbit and held it in an iron grip as it squealed and squealed. The snake began to crawl away, pausing frequently to hold the young rabbit high in the air. About this time mother cottontail shot from the weeds and proceeded to unmercifully pummel the large snake with her strong hind legs. After a minute or so of this, the snake decided that baby rabbit wasn’t that good after all. He dropped the rabbit, and being a bit confused after being kicked in the head about 40 times, took off for cover — underneath my shredder. The last I saw of momma rabbit, she and baby were high tailing it into tall weeds.

Today, the second Sunday in May, is a day we set aside in the United States to honor our mothers. Although the specific day of the year may vary widely, almost every nation, culture and civilization since earliest time chooses a time to honor the mothers from which we all emerge.

Our vocabulary has countless references to motherhood. Descriptions and names frequently include terminologies such as Mother Earth, Mother of Pearl, Mother Goose, the Sierra Madre mountain range, the Laguna Madre, the Mother Lode, and even motherboards for our computers. Each of these terms refer to this majestic and singularly unequaled facet in each of our lives — our mothers — the bearer and mentor for all God’s beings, and the foundation upon which we are all built.

As I reflect on my own mother, I see her as a strong, dominant and exceptionally talented lady, whose sincerity and determination seemingly knew no bounds. Having grown up during the Great Depression, she did not receive an extensive formal education, but instead, received an unsurpassed work ethic and sense of responsibility from the school of hard knocks. With this foundation she created a home environment nurtured not by great gifts and adornments, but by love, trust and commitment.

Despite having to wash clothes in cast iron pots heated with a wood fire, and ironing with an iron heated on the wood cook stove, we went off to school each day in clean and ironed clothes. In all likelihood, she had made our shirts from feed sacks on her old treadle Singer sewing machine. I’ve seen her sew toe sacks all day on the peanut thresher until her fingers bled, then cook supper and bathe two boys before bedtime — all without a whimper.

I am happy that she was able to enjoy a more comfortable life in her later years. During her last days in a nursing home, she would laugh as she recalled how she would blister my hind-end in the middle of church services instead of taking me outside to do it. She thought I was just looking for an excuse to go outside. I also recall how on one summer day I sneaked off to the field where my dad was plowing. When she finally figured out where I was, she cut a switch and whacked my ankles and legs all the way to the house. At the time I felt terribly persecuted.

I learned many lessons from her hard discipline and from the strict personal example she set, but one lesson really stuck — be a lot more careful to not get caught. Thanks, Mom.



Larry M. Jones is a retired Navy Commander and aviator who raises cattle and hay in the Brock/Lazy Bend part of Parker County. Comments may be directed to larrj2@airmail.net. Columns submitted to The Weatherford Democrat by guest writers reflect the opinions of the writer and in no way reflect the beliefs or opinions of The Weatherford Democrat.

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