Lessons from Mom

With Mother’s Day upon us I was thinking about some of the lessons my mom taught me.  She’s been gone a few years now, but the reminders of her presence are never far.  Some are physical, like the plates we use daily, and the lovely art deco lamps in our living room.  Many are more about the things she taught me along the way.

My mom’s oft-stated goal was to build community wherever she found herself, and to leave each place better for having lived there.  Growing up as a shy, nervous introvert, I would never have imagined how, looking around now, I have stepped into this objective and lifestyle.

Mom thought every kid should leave home with 3 basic life skills; cooking, backing, and sewing.  Because I knew how to sew, I made backpacking gear for myself, and that grew into Gossamer Gear.  Besides resulting in me having lots of gear in my basement, founding Gossamer Gear was a step in meeting hundreds of influential and genuine friends in life.  In turn, those experiences and relationships led to me writing take less. do more. and the wild adventures that have resulted from being an author.  I can’t imagine a life without everything that has flowed from the skill of sewing.

Mom also mentioned, and lived by, the concept of noblesse oblige.  Privilege, be it wealth, time, skills or talents, comes with a responsibility to use those resources for others.  It was a key factor in my setting up what was originally a separate account for intentional generosity.  I’ve referenced this in a previous blog post, and it’s something that comes up a LOT as resonating with readers of my book, and something that people have instituted in their lives.  If this is something you’ve added to your life, I would love to hear about it.

Eating wholesome food was important to my mom.  The only time I ever ate store-bought bread was at a friend’s house.  At home, we ate the home-baked whole wheat bread that my mom cranked out 6 loaves at a time.  Meals usually included a lot of home-grown vegetables, organic before that was even a thing.  And here I am, baking all my own bread, sourdough this time around, incorporating whole grains.

And, as evidenced by the photo above, evidently my mom gave me a love of washing dishes, never suspecting that it would feature so prominently in my future career.  For those of you that haven’t read my book, it explains how I currently am a parttime dishwasher at The Sparrow Bakery here in Bend. Dishwashing is important work, and a reminder that everyone has a crucial part to play, even if some roles seem more humble than others.

There’s definitely more that I learned from my mom, but what about you?  What are the lessons from your mom that have stuck with you?