Don’t forget Mother’s Day

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Saturday 29th March 2014

IMG_0472It’s Mother’s Day tomorrow and I hope that sons and daughters everywhere will be telling their mums how much they love them.

My mother died a decade ago so I’ve decided to re-run one of my earliest blogs, explaining what the day feels to me now.

Walking past the florist’s shop at this time of year makes me sad. They’re getting ready for Mother’s Day and the pavement outside is filled with baskets of fragrant white hyacinths and delicate pink tulips that are still in bud.

Mother’s Day is bitter-sweet these days. I long to send my mum flowers wrapped in brown paper and tied with ribbon, fix lunch and catch up with all the gossip over a glass of champagne. But she died nearly ten years ago and instead of dwelling on what might have been I’m going to make the most of being with my lovely children.

The trouble is that even though she’s not here I still want to tell my mum everything. She’d be enthralled to hear I’ve recklessly bought a tumbledown farmhouse in the south of France. And she’d be appalled that it’s damp, derelict and only has half a roof. She’d be staggered by how tall my son has grown and how scary he is when he’s whizzing down hills at full pelt on his bike. She’d be so proud of my daughter’s place at university and fierce independence.

My grandmother died at the age of 62 and after that my mum always dreaded Mother’s Day. One year she wrote in her newspaper column: “Don’t say it’s sentimental rubbish, emotional blackmail, commercial exploitation and that your mother knows you love her anyway. I’m sure she does, but the joy she’ll get from a tangible expression of your feelings is more than worth the effort. There were times when I forgot to mark the day for my brilliant mother and what I’d give now to be able to send her flowers by the lorry load.”

As always she was completely right. So this weekend I’m thinking about her and remembering all the wonderful times we had…


5 comments so far

  • Dear lovely Emma, I commented on this wonderful post last time; it’s my favourite. I love your memories as it reminds me of mine. My wonderful Mum died on Mothers Day, which was especially fitting. We hold the baton now, as you say.

    Love Sheena

  • That is so lovely of you, Sheena. Mother’s Day must be even harder for you these days but I hope you have a wonderful day with your children and grandchildren. They all look gorgeous!

  • Oh my gosh, I remember reading that column in the Daily Mail, it made a real impact on me. I used to really enjoy your mother’s columns, but that one really stayed with me. I still have my Mum aged 83yrs & as the years have gone by I realise how lucky that makes me.
    I hope you had a lovely Mothering Sunday with your children.

Leave a Reply