Every Day is Mother's Day

Mine and Eric’s families know that I’m terrible about remembering birthdays. They also know, as I’ve told Zatha and Hans on many days of every year since they were born, that I have always believed every day was Mother’s Day, every day is a day to celebrate your birth, every day is Christmas, every day is a day to give gifts, hug your mom and dad, celebrate with your kids.

Hallmark doesn’t like the Loewen family because we’ve rarely bought any of their Father’s Day or Mother’s Day or Grandparent’s Day cards. They do have great writers who can sometimes express one's thoughts better than one thinks one can, but, for the most part, I’ve always said something when I’ve felt it, or given a gift when I’ve found it.

The beauty in each of us are our differences. If we were all the same then all women would want to marry Eric, all bedrooms would be decorated the same, everyone would eat just chicken nuggets (like our former cutie-pie foster son Maverick wanted to do for every meal, every day.) So not everyone wants to or has to celebrate like I do.

Now Zatha, like her dad, loves to wait for the intended time to open her gifts and surprises. She can wait for days and even go past an intended celebration without opening a gift, waiting until everyone is there to enjoy it with her. She revels in the anticipation and is then so excited when she opens her card or gift that she effuses excitement and appreciation and joy. Those of you who know Zatha also know that she is that way every time she runs into a friend. It’s like it’s the first time she’s seen you in years, every time!

Hans, on the other hand, would be so excited that he’d found a gift or run across an item that was perfect for someone that he just HAD to tell the recipient what he’d found, when he found it. So I always knew months before the actual anniversary of my birth or before Christmas what was going to be in my stocking or handed to me when he saw me, because every day is Mother’s Day. Every day is a day to celebrate your birth.

I was baptized, confirmed, and my marriage vows renewed in the Episcopal Church. Zatha and Hans were baptized and confirmed there as well. Eric was confirmed there after Zatha was born. Hans played drums every Sunday at the United Methodist Church his last two years of high school, and he and I played together for many special services at the Presbyterian Church. My Aunt, Uncle and cousins are Jewish. Hans’s girlfriend was raised in the Mormon Church. We have Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist friends. We’ve attended Baptist churches and Hans’s memorial service was held at one of favorite local Baptist churches. But I've never spoken with a Jehovah’s Witness, where I understand they do not celebrate birthdays, Christmas, Easter or any other celebration with what they view may have Pagan origins or that place man on a higher pedestal than Christ.

I can understand why they believe that. And many of them may think the video of Hans we have made (link posted below) is idolization. Of course, justifying the decision we made to make it, I don’t think it is – I think it is a celebration of a life well lived. We made this for Hans’s beautiful memorial service Saturday, which was a glorious celebration with beautiful and uplifting music provided by his friends and fellow musicians, funny and touching and loving words spoken by some of his closest friends, and beautiful remembrances of his life. Our goal was to make the movie better than Hans could (his videos are amazing!), and we don’t think we got there. But it’s still awesome! You MUST be sure to watch it until the very, very, very end, when the time remaining hits zero. It gives a tiny glimpse into the way Hans left this life, leaving many smiles on many faces, as well as a few head shakes.