OCR Text |
Show Now mother needs daughter n.g. blah , "; . : .'V.-.. ... ' , ' By MARCELLA WALKER Mother called and she said thai she needed me. She has been going through a trying time because my stepfather has been ill with cancer and at his age, 80, it is not something to be sniffed at. It is strange when your mother calls and says that she needs you. It has always been the other way around. Even when you are married and grown up and moved away there are times when you need your mom. I needed her when I was away at college and got the flu. I just had to hear her voice and have her tell me what to do to get well. I needed her when the children were born. She came and stayed for a month before our first child was born. She helped with the little things. She shaved my legs when I couldn't bend over far enough to do it. She went for walks with me and.. helped me fix meals. ( I She came on the run to stay with the oldest child when we dashed off to the hospital to have our next child. We stayed all night at her house ; the night before the third child was born and we left the older two children with her as we left at 2 a.m. afternoon when the baby decided to come for sure. She came on that Saturday in January when our fifth child decided to be born and helped to get the children down to the other grandmother's grand-mother's the following day. She was a school teacher and in the winter was only available on the weekends so, fortunately, we had the wonderful other grandmother in Pleasant Grove who took care of several of the children while I was in the hospital, too. Mom came to our rescue with a loan when we needed a down payment on our first home. Daddy had passed away and she willingly-loaned willingly-loaned us the money, saying Daddy would have wanted her to, also. She never asked for that loan to be paid back. She watched the kids one time so that Jerry and I could have a day or so away. She has always been willing to have a grandchild stay for a day or two and made that time so special for them that they sometimes did not want to come home. She always came with a treat. She remembered all birthdays, an-niversarys an-niversarys and special holidays. She still does. She brought in a few extra groceries when she knew we had a tight budget. She did this for all her children, not just me. Mom has always been there. If we needed her, and I often have in the past years, she was right there. She went on a trip with us not long after Daddy died. She held a child on her lap the entire way. The chili loved it and so did she. Mom makes going to visit fun and the kids always ask for some "grandma cheese" when theyareal her house. She often takes us to dinner and the kids like to eat out with her. So, when the phone call came and she said she needed me, I got a lump in my throat and goosebumps. Mom needed me. I went and I'll probably havetogo again because Grandpa is so ill. But I'll try to always be there. After all these years, if she needs me I want to be as ready to help her as she has . been to help me. I hope my kids always need me. II the time comes I hope I'll be able to say to them, "I need you," andthey will be able to come to me. It is important to be needed. , , r . to. return to Salt Lake to the hospital. She stayed until late the night before the fourth child was born in case the contractions became any stronger. When they stopped she took the youngest child and went home, only to have to return the next |