I ran across this as I was preparing for my message on Mother’s Day. I thought you might like to read it.
The young mother set her foot on the path of life. “Is the way long?” she asked. Her guide answered: “Oh yes, & the way is hard, & you will be old before you reach the end of it. But the end will be better than the beginning.”
But the young mother was happy, & she did not believe anything could be better than these years. So she played with her children, & gathered flowers for them along the way. The sun shone on them, life was good, & the young mother said, “Nothing will ever be better than this.”
Then night came, & storm, & the path was dark, & the children shook with fear & cold, & the mother drew them close & covered them with her cloak. The children said, “Oh Mother, we’re not afraid, for you are near, & no harm can come.”
The Mother said, “This is better than the brightness of the day, for I have taught my children courage.”
Morning came, & there was a hill ahead, & the children climbed & grew weary but she said to them, “A little patience & we’ll soon be there.” So the children climbed, & when they reached the top, they said, “We could not have done it without you, Mother.”
And the Mother, when she lay down that night, looked up at the stars & said, “This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned perseverance in the face of difficulty. Yesterday I gave them courage. Today I have given them strength.”
With the next day came strange clouds which darkened the earth – clouds of war & hatred & evil, & the children groped & stumbled. So the mother said: “Look up. Lift your eyes to the light.” The children looked up & saw above the clouds an everlasting Glory, & it guided them & brought them beyond the darkness.
That night the Mother said, “This is the best day of all, for I have shown my children God.”
The days went on, & weeks & months & years, & the Mother grew old & frail. But her children were strong & tall, & walked with courage. And when the way was hard, they helped their mother; & when the way was rough they lifted her, for she was light as a feather. And at last they came to golden gates flung wide open.
The Mother said to them: “I have reached the end of my journey. And now I know that the end is better than the beginning, for my children can walk alone, & their children after them.”
The children said, “You will always walk with us mother, even when you have gone through the gates.”
And they stood & watched her as she went on alone, & the gates closed after her, & they said, “We cannot see her, but she is with us still. A Mother like ours will always be much more than just a memory.”