My older brother and I grew up in poverty during the depression in a tiny village for the first years of life. Dad and mom lost their first son to a hasty attempt to force his birth. Then brother Maurice came along and the family was doing all right even in the midst of the terrible economic times.
I was born just after dad had a burst appendix and we were wiped out. Our mother worked and held things together with a lot of assistance form our neighbors and mom's parents.
It was especially the women in our lives that worked hard, loved us a lot and taught us many good lessons. I find the current teachings about women being restricted to the home laughable because in an agrarian society like the Bible and my childhood everybody worked, especially women.
Mother worked at home and at the shoe factory. Her mother worked at home and at the small retail store in town. Both of these women were solid examples of both the love of God and family.
One of the most powerful images I ever saw expressing the sacrificial love of mothers was in the Oslo Museum. It is a long marble statue of a naked mother, lying on her side with her hands tied behind her back with a baby nursing at her breast.
For generations nature and society have made mothering painful and difficult. Despite these challenges most mothers doe their best to rear children with character and success.
My mother and grand mother were heroines that did wonderful things for their families. I honor them!
My Mother, Leota Taylor Sweeten
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