For almost as long as I remember when I look around the dinner table I have been surrounded by mothers. My father got sick when I was very young, I had no brothers, and never met either of my maternal grandfathers. So, I learned early on what motherhood really meant. From what I have learned the terms love and caring are often used to describe mothers, but I need words that go much deeper than just that.
There is only one word to describe my mother, Debbie Barton, that is inspirational. That term is not just reserved for a loving son to push onto his mother, but it is a true inspiration story. My mother came from meager means and worked hard to move away from the city and into the first ever suburbs on Long Island. After flying to Germany, because she couldn't stand to be away from my father who was stationed there in the war, and giving birth to my sister Kim, they came home and had a pretty great life. Until tragedy struck our family and my father had a stroke in his early 40's. With nowhere else to turn my mother prayed and was given a sign. She pointed into a newspaper and it said they needed nurses. In her 40's herself she decided to go back to school, and oh how she succeeded. Not only did she graduate in record time, but she challenged every course to complete them even faster. Despite the naysayers, she didn't take the easy road and ask for handouts, rather she continued to fight and make something of herself that everyone could admire.
When she finally had a chance to retire, she opted to buy an even bigger house so that "her grandchildren could always have a place to play". That sort of love is an inspiration beyond career accomplishments. And perhaps the greatest inspiration is seeing how much she loves her grandchildren and they love her back. She puts everyone before herself and takes pleasure in the love she gets back. Even to this day, she could be retired somewhere on a palm tree island, but is still a nurse taking care of disabled patients who need homecare. Yes, inspiring is the word that I would use on this mothers day, and every day for my mom.
My sister also can't be described as just loving and caring. While she is both of those, kind fits her like a glove. Kim is nearly 9 years older than me so she had the heavy burden of having to help raise me after our lives were turned upside down. In a world full of anger, she treated every moment with me with kindness. That kindness is spread past me. She is a special needs teacher and I can honestly say doesn't do it for the money. She gives her time as a religion teacher and girl scout leader, even though her daughters haven't been that age in a decade. She is always helping and lifting people up. I mean, the woman even carries spiders out of the house rather than killing them. True story. Kim has raised her daughters to see the good in the world and beyond everything else just be kind to everyone.
Last, but certainly not least is my wife. Again, loving and caring just won't do her justice. Hope is the word I would use for Abby Barton. Hope not only in a religious way, which there is an abundance of, but in the way she sees the world. Abby has always had hope in the world around her, myself and especially her children. I am cynical and probably always will be, but Abby allows me to see the beauty of what could be, rather than always preparing for what might be. I was penniless when we met and she pushed me through the hard times. Hope is what kept me going and I had nearly none at the time. Now, I look back and wonder how I made it, and seeing the world through her eyes made me work harder to make the hope she had into the reality of what we've become. We often sit around and discuss the hope of our future, hope of what the kids will accomplish and hope for a better world, and we work to make those hopes a reality. Abby's world is full of hope and those dreams are still coming true. This month she will make me a father again for the third time and every time I look into her eyes I can still see the hope of even more to come. My son, my daughter and my soon to be new son will all have that sparkle of hope in their eye, because their mother will hand down her greatest gift to them.