What I Learned From My Mother
I learned from my mother how to grow carrots as big as my little finger and how to scrub the dirt off a carrot with my shirt so I could eat it fresh out of the garden any time I was hungry. I learned it’s okay if you laugh at a funeral because you don’t want to cry. I learned how to type and sew and knit and crochet. And I learned how to iron shirts and tablecloths. I learned that you didn’t want to get your hands near a wringer washer or your fingers too close to a sewing machine needle. I learned not to panic when someone or your dog got hurt, and that you could and should comfort the injured. I learned how to spell and do my homework and go to bed when you were making too many mistakes. I learned that you would do better with a fresh brain, than with a tired one. I learned to make roads in dirt for Tonka trucks and rivers to drain puddles and how to repair broken porcelain horses. I learned how to speak kindly and share even when it wasn’t what you wanted t
