Mom

She was the quintessential Mom.
Stayed at home and took care of us until a doctor told her that getting a job would be the best thing for her health. Mom had Arthritis and many was the morning that she had trouble getting around. The doctor suggested to her about going to work thinking that the movement of a job would help with the stiffness that came with ol' Arthur, the name my Mom used to refer to her disease.
She became a waitress.
She was good at what she did.
She worked at the Riverboat Restaurant when it was owned by Senator Jim Martin.
She met a lot of famous people while there.
My favorite story was one concerning Country Music Star Roy Clark.
Mr. Clark and a group of his friends had come down from Nashville to attend one of the races at Talladega.
They had come to the Riverboat for dinner one evening and my Mom was their waitress.
As always, she went above and beyond to give them the best service she could. Eventually the dinner ended and everyone got up to leave. When Mom went to clear the table, there wasn't any tip at all. She was very frustrated because she felt like she earned a tip by the service she had provided. But that was the way it went sometimes.
The evening progressed and her shift was almost over when Roy Clark came back through the door and walked over to where Mom was sitting. He explained that he thought someone had left a tip, but found out that, by mistake, no one had. He apologized for the slight and proceeded to hand my Mother $100.00. "I hope this makes up for our error. You really are a good waitress," Mr. Clark said. My Mom was beside herself and she told that story on numerous occasions or when ever Roy Clark was on television.

Today, May 26th, my Mom died.
I was there by her bedside when she shed the coil of this life to cross over and find out the truth of what she had believed since childhood. The belief that God was who He claimed to be and was able to do what He promised He would do.
How simple and easy death comes.
I remember sitting by her bed, listening to her struggle with each breath. Inhale.......a long pause.........exhale. Doctor's had told us that it was only a matter of time. I tried to picture what death would look like. Would there be one final battle as my Mom drew breath?
It wasn't anything like I pictured.
I was sitting there holding her hand. She drew a deep breath..........................then nothing. No exhale. No movement to her body. It just stopped. Yet in that moment, my Mom made the transition that we all must follow.
I remember thinking to myself, " That's it? That is all there is to death? One moment you're drawing breath, the next it's over?" Yes, that is the way it is.
The next few hours were a blur as phone calls were made and the plans were begun for Mom's funeral.
In all of this activity, I had called a good friend, Don Rakestraw, to let him know of my Mom's death. He shared with me a verse that has brought me great strength over the years.

Psalm 116:15
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.
God, who possess all power and authority, still sees the passing of His creation as something that is precious and not to be feared.
Another of my friends made reference to death being the ultimate healing.
No longer would my Mom suffer.
No longer would the strife and trouble of this world affect her. She was home. She was with my Grandfather and Grandmother. She was with her brother. She was with her Lord.
So each year on May 26th, my mind is drawn back to a hospital room at Gadsden Regional Medical Center, and how my Mom made the transition from this life to the next.
I know that I will follow at some point.
I pray that I can do it as well as my Mom did.
Blessed be the name of the LORD.

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