In Honor of our Mothers

Mother’s Day is often a time of reflection and celebration of someone who has probably been the most influential person in our lives. Mothers often give thought about us from the time of conception through watching us grow into adulthood.

We can focus on Tupac Shakur’s song, “Dear Mama” and the lyrics that honor his mother. Tupac’s song is an acknowledgement of his mother’s irreplaceable impact on his life and the struggle she went through as a single parent. Our stories about our mothers may not reflect those references to Tupac’s lyrics, but we do share the similarities of honor, love, and respect to the single person on earth who knows us best.

Here are the stories that honor our mothers from the three (3) chefs of Occasional Occasions by Carlton Catering and one of our clients.

In Remembrance by Chef Carlton:

I was fortunate enough to have been raised by a very strong woman. She is no longer with me, but I know that she looks down daily with pride in her heart, watching the young man she raised and knowing that the fruits of her labor yielded greatness. I was mostly raised by my mother from birth until I turned 9 years old because my father (US Marine) fought in Vietnam during those years, so my mother was my mother, father, and everything.
She was a schoolteacher, (a home economics teacher to be precise) so her nature to care, love, listen, advise and be a role model was a constant part of her life. She was a very classy and sophisticated woman, yet soft spoken. But she was respected by all in the community.

She taught me so many things over her years, probably unknowingly, that were a large influence to my career choice of a caterer. We were always close, but as we grew older, I loved her even more and more. We were also best friends and during the early years of my catering company, we would plan elaborate trips together to foreign countries, like England, Italy, Greek Islands, Istanbul, Rome, Amsterdam and so forth. We thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company.

My mother passed away in 1999 due to cancer. You never can fully realize the impact that someone has on you until they are no longer with you. I’ve lost many loved ones over the years, but the loss of my mother bore a hole in my soul that still exists today.
I think about my mother so often and wish that she was still here, but I know that she is sitting proud of the son that she has raised. Thank you, Hilda, for the lifetime memories that will be cherished forever.

Reflections by Chef Christopher:

As a grown man, when I think of my mother, the words that come to mind are my best friend, my advisor and counselor, the Queen of our family. I remember her as the disciplinarian, the protector, the comforter and nurturer, the provider and the judge and jury.

To me, my mother is the most amazing person on earth. Our home was always full of warmth and laughter, just by her presence and the simple things that she would do to make an ordinary day seem special. Oh, and the holidays were especially wonderful, particularly Thanksgiving and Christmas. I believe because of her, that is why I tend to go all out during those holidays.

My mother was an extremely hardworking women, attending nursing school, working, and raising her children along with the help of my aunties, grandmother and grandfather who all lived in the same community.

I have always had a wonderful relationship with my mother, but I really didn’t know how special that relationship was until I watched her as a grandmother to my kids. My mother came to live with us for a period of thirteen (13) years, and I watched her love, care for, nurture and help raise my children. I saw how much wealth and wisdom she imparted to them. I absolutely love and admire the relationship between my mother and my sons. And they get to watch and experience the relationship between me and my mother…two (2) best friends.

A letter by Chef Marcus:

Ma, there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about you and how you are doing. I cannot express enough the amount of love and appreciation that I have for you, raising me and always having my back. Though sometimes I gave you grief, but now I’m grown, I realize that what you were doing to raise me helped to make me stronger and more focused.

Even to this day, you continue to show me that hard work and determination will always prevail in the end. I know I can’t have you forever, it’s hard for me to face the thought of you not being here for me, it literally brings tears to my eyes and a weak feeling in my soul. There is so much I have yet to experience and look forward to those experiences with you by my side…helping me, pushing me to stay focused and knowing everything is going to be okay.

What it means to me, Dr Trina Wilson to be a mother:

To me being a mother is one of the first signs of the sovereignty of God in our lives because we were chosen by God. To be a mom is a life long position of servant. To be a mother is to be a teacher, both seen and unseen. To be a mother is to teach our children to have confidence and belief in themselves by exercising their faith beyond what they can do alone. To be a mother I am a lifelong cheerleader for every milestone my children will ever experience. To be a mother is a display an abundance of unconditional love that has no end in spite of every choice that they choose in their lives. To be a mother means to cherish the countless memories that are truly priceless. To be a mother is to be a needed protector from themselves at times. To be a mother I have known the very beginning how important it was for children to believe in themselves in order for them to be whole, strong and grow mentally. In order for them to have a healthy view of oneself. Lastly, to be a mother is a lifelong experience of my children participating in my growth so that I can be the BEST person I can be through the life experiences and growth opportunities that we share together…because at the end we learn that we were all created for God’s purpose. At the end God WINS!!

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