T E X A R K A N A M A G A Z I N E
“Electricity costs money,” she would say as she went around the house, turning off lights long before conserving energy was a thing. “Gasoline is expensive,” she preached as she denied permission for a special trip to the grocery store for a forgotten item. “It takes extra electricity to heat the iron,” was the reason we weren’t permitted to press just one piece of clothing. House rules required that we iron a minimum of three items once the iron was turned on. My mother was a very practical woman, and most of her motherisms demonstrate that fact. When I was nine, I traveled with my mother to Dallas to meet her college roommate at the Adolphus Hotel. The woman had married well, and I was in awe of her exquisite clothes and matched luggage. Her daughters, on the other hand, were mesmerized by my mother’s ability to make lemonade from the lemon wedges and sugar packets that came with the room service iced tea. “If room service gives you lemons…” My mother is no longer living, but her motherisms will always be with me. She taught me to wear white gloves when putting on stockings in order to avoid snags. She instructed me that a lady always wears a slip. Some of her wisdom is decidedly out of date; I don’t remember the last time I wore stockings or a slip. It sticks with me, nonetheless.
Some things she always said still ring true. Don’t put fabric softener on towels; it inhibits their absorbency. If you put your jeans in the dryer, they’ll come out too short. Don’t wait until the last minute to get a chore finished because something might come up. Don’t leave your shoes all over the house. From time to time, I hear my son quote one of my own motherisms and it always gives me a kick to know he’s stored away one of my little pearls. When someone damaged his truck at 2:00 a.m. in a convenience store parking lot, he told the police officer that his mother always said nothing good happens after midnight. (Am I right?) Once, on his way to a dinner party, he appropriated a bottle of wine from my wine rack with a wink and the words, “My mom always said not to show up empty-handed.” What did your mother always say? You probably have a list. Here’s a fun activity: If you’re a mother, give some thought to what your children will say following the words “My mother always said.” Though I’m pretty sure the words “Go watch Sesame Street” came out of my mouth regularly, I’m grateful my son doesn’t seem to remember. One of the motherisms I’ve passed along to him is one that is undeniably true: Nobody ever loves you like your mother. Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there, especially yours.
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L I F E & S T Y L E
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