A Mother's Day Tribute

Purchased over twenty-two-years ago by my mother from a lady at Avon, a set of eight porcelain ducks came into our lives. Smooth to the touch except for the little ripples their wings made, each duck was small in size, being only about two and a half inches long. Whenever you touched the solid slightly-heavy ducks a feeling of coolness swept through your body. I absolutely adore those ducks. They were given to me by my mother when I left for college. No matter how many years go by, I can always look at those ducks and get an overwhelming sense of my childhood flooding back into memory. My mother's image of how she was then will be forever etched into my mind.

My mother, was not only an intelligent woman with vast amounts of knowledge; she was a woman that carried around a wealth of common sense. Lined side by side hanging on the wall was a set of eight porcelain ducks. I first noticed the ducks when I was very young. The bright colors of the two mallard ducks were amazingly beautiful and always would peak my interest. I was always contemplating ways in which I could reach them. They only hung about midway up on a brown shelf that I called their "home." As I was deep in thought, that is as deep in thought as a young child would be, my mom entered the living room. "Ebie! You cannot play with those ducks. They are expensive and not toys," she proclaimed. "Darn, one point for mom and zero for Ebie," I mumbled under my breath. I resided knowing that I needed to come up with a different plan of attack. For as long as I can remember my mother has always been one step ahead of me (must be that mother's knowledge kicking in!) Her deep brown eyes would always peer into mine. It was like she was seemingly unraveling everything wrong that I was thinking about doing. My mother virtually taught me everything that I know today. She walked me through both the good and bad lessons that life will eventually throw at you. On a daily basis she would represent herself in a collected manner whenever a problem arose. I remember neighbors always seeking her out for answers to their questions. Through the eyes of her little girl, she was the next best thing since Mickey Mouse popsicles! Those popsicles were huge by the way, since you had a chance to win a trip to Disney World! At the time I remember thinking she must be some kind of genius, well actually in my limited vocabulary, "really smart." Who else in the world would be able to read me chapter books?

My mother even though being young herself, always held her head high and was proud of who she was. As I gradually became older I realized what a great quality that was for anyone to have. I would sit and watch intently as she picked up duck after duck and carefully dusted them and their "home." I always thought the ducks looked their best right after being dusted. This is when the green heads of the mallards would shine the most. I have always had a favorite, but now it was clear to everyone. I would always make sure my mom would dust and then dust again the mallards. I made it clear that she was to pay special attention to all their details. Those mallard ducks looked not only beautiful, but powerful at the same time. The mallards were definitely my favorite. My mother was not only proud of herself and proud of the ducks that she so carefully took care of; she was proud of me as well. Whenever I was discouraged she was always there with a smile on her face to tell me, "Things will get better. Hey they cannot get much worse." Sometimes I would laugh at this, while other times I would choose to stay miserable for a while. My mother loved and cared for me so deeply that she let everyone know that I was her little girl. When I was little, the world seemed like such a scary place! It was always so nice and reassuring knowing that I had a caring mother to come home to.

Just as the ducks were loyal to one another, my mother was faithful to everyone around her. The best words of advice to ever come from my mother to me were, "Just tell it how it is. Always be honest with yourself and others. Sometimes people may not like to hear the truth, but in the end everything will work out for the best." I often thought of those words as I have grown over the years. I find them to be very true, useful, and indeed wonderful words to live by. I remember listening to my mother as she would talk to her friends. Honestly, she was always telling them the truth! However, she did it in such a way that the truth was okay to be heard. I always marveled at the fact that she would not offend anyone with her speaking of the truth. That is one skill of hers that I have yet to conquer. If I ever needed an honest opinion of something or the truth straight out I would definitely seek the advice of my mother.

Throughout my travels of life, I know that no matter where I end up every time I look at those ducks I will feel as if I am home. My mother is an absolutely amazing person in my eyes. I feel as though a small part of her is represented in those ducks. Ducks to me symbolize intelligent, creative, clever, and loyal creatures. My mother encompasses all of those qualities and many more. I will always think of my mother whenever I set my gaze upon those ducks. Her strong-willed and determined personality brings life to those ducks, as well as it brings life to my childhood.