Skip to main content

The Party of a Lifetime

Last September I went to the party of a lifetime.  No, I'm not exaggerating.
On Sunday, September 16th, 2012, my daughter got married and I had my moment as Mother of the Bride. It was truly a day like no other: exhilarating, sacred, and a bit overwhelming.

Weddings can be complicated events. While meant to be a celebration of love and commitment, shared with family and friends, they can sometimes feel like a list of things to be done. And more than just a mere list, but rather a triathlon, a quest, and an exhibition of skill. So many things which must be done right. So many ways to try to be perfect while others are watching.

Well, this moment, right here, is the one that matters most to me. Our wonderful photographer, Kathy Shilling, made sure that this moment happened and was captured--for us.  



A moment, before the mirror, of reflection and love. In that image she caught a relationship: two feisty women who had to grow up together, making their own way. 

I share this moment with you because I'm looking ahead to another party of a lifetime. Okay, maybe I'm wandering into a bit of hyperbole this time. I'm referring to the upcoming hocoblogs party at Union Jack's, on Tuesday, February 26th. Sponsored by Bill Woodock of The 53 and Claire McGill of UK Desperate Housewife, it will offer hocolocal bloggers and their readers a chance to meet, mingle, and hang out for a few hours.

This party has special meaning for me. I'll be coming with the author of HoCoHouseHon. You see the two of us pictured above. We are, to my knowledge, the only mother/daughter bloggers in the hoco. No, we don't wear matching dresses or anything like that. 

We're two feisty women, making our own way.

I have heard some women express the view that their daughter's wedding day was the zenith of their relationship, the high point of motherhood.  Not so for me.What makes me happiest is seeing my daughter grow as a writer, a talent she showed from very early in her life. While she had the gift, she didn't often believe in herself. It's hard to be a parent when you see your child's strengths so clearly while she herself is unsure.

I've loved writing my entire life. My mother shared a love of words with me. I passed it on.  Many's the bedtime that got put off to look up interesting words in the dictionary. I've been blogging since 2011 and recently started a Facebook page for the blog. Alice started her own blog in 2011 and then life and work intervened. Until now.

2012 marked her return to writing and her commitment to life as a writer. Her blog provides me a certain exquisite discomfort as I read pieces that are so much better than anything I could write. Isn't that what we should want? We raise our children to be able to try their wings, to fly out on their own: beautiful, capable, strong.

I hope I'll see you at the party on the 26th. It should be easy to find us--look for the two feisty women.
 
 

hocoblogs@@@

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more

Columbia Chance Connection

  Last night, as my husband and I were about to sit down to dinner, our front door swung open and a cheery voice announced, “I’m ba—ack!”  We weren’t expecting anyone. Clearly the only people who’d walk right in to our house would be one of our offspring. I had my reading glasses on so I wasn’t seeing too clearly. It seemed too tall for our youngest, but we knew our eldest was at work. I took off my glasses to see a friendly but confused face scanning our living room. When her gaze landed on us we all had a sudden realization. We didn’t know eachother. “Oh I’m so sorry! I’m in the wrong house! My daughter just moved in and she needed hooks for the kitchen so I ran out to get them.” She waved the package. “All these houses look the same and I don’t know the neighborhood yet. I thought this was my daughter’s house.” We were all getting a bit giggly. “That’s okay. For a quick second we thought you were our daughter,” said my husband. I told her our names and said she should defin...
Post a Comment
Read more