A Holy Crap Moment.

(Please don't take offense, as I realize it is Holy Week. Happy Holy week and Thanks be to God for the greatest gift to the world!)

Anyway, every so often I have a "Holy Crap" moment. Usually this happens when I hear something, and it makes me think about my age, which leads me to think about what my parents were doing when they were my age. What caused this particular moment was something I heard on the radio. They were talking about how having your parents at each of your sporting events, or how not having your parents there affected you. Honesty, I had never really thought about it. It was a given that Mama was going to be at everything. She always was. I didn't think it was an option. Daddy was at a lot of stuff too. That lead me to think about what was going on when she was 38 (which made Daddy 41). I was 11, which meant Joey was 13, and Dana was 15 (which was driving age in Mississippi when we grew up.Let's see puberty + puberty + new driver = hell) Daddy was farming through the rough years, and working at Cottonwood in Louisiana, but still made it to every dance recital, Catfish Festival and as many games as he could. He also taught us math and helped us with our math homework, which was his expertise. Mama was into every aspect of our lives. She was "Room mother" to one of our classes EVERY year. She was at every football game (pee wee, junior high and high school), every Little League, Pony League, and High school baseball game, every cheerleader competition, every dance show, and every lame "tom turkey"/pilgrim class play, and made the costumes too! When I was in junior high she was working at the bank and Daddy was working in Vicksburg full time. She still didn't miss anything, plus she ran the farm while Daddy was away working 16-20 hour days during farming and hunting season. She literally came in from the bank, stripped off her pantyhose and high heels and threw on her jeans and tennis shoes and went out into the field. (Yes, prissy Scarlet O' Meme ran the farm, got in the dirt, and did it all with style!) Their sacrifice takes my breath away. We didn't have drive-thru Wendy's or McDonald's, we had real homemade food. We went to dance seminars each summer, and went to Vicksburg to see Daddy almost every weekend. He would take me out fishing or riding every time we were down there, no matter how tired he was. I don't know how they did it. I think of how tired I am after work, and how I truly DREAD the idea of running any errands and I wonder "How DID they do it?" Mama was everywhere, and had a smile on her face, or what I could see of it poking out from behind the video camera that was the size of suitcase. Daddy would come in from the field covered with dirt and dinitro (yellow chemical) and sit down with us to teach variables. Mrs. Guy couldn't get any of us to understand how in the world you could add an "X" to a "Y", but Daddy did! They were and are an integral part of our lives academically, emotionally, and athletically (not so much athletically anymore!) They molded us and continue to do so. I feel like I just expected it as a kid and didn't appreciate it or think it was a big deal. They never acted like it was a big deal or a sacrifice, which is even more amazing. I appreciate what they did so much. They went above and beyond what parents are called to do, and for that I am forever grateful and indebted.
It is so good to have a moment like this to remember what is important, and it is quite appropriate for Holy Week too, as we think about Jesus, and God's sacrifice as a parent, and how He is with us all the time and continues to be no matter how old we get.







I am so blessed! Love, Shannon