Eight decades ago, a remarkable woman came into this world. Of course she was just a baby then, born of humble beginnings to a sharecropper and his wife in rural Loiusiana just months before the start of the Great Depression. She grew up poor, walking miles to school, helping in the fields. She excelled in school and went on to nursing school, leaving her rural life behind. She not only gained a nursing degree, but she also gained a husband and began her adult life as a working mom to the six children born to her over the next 17 years.
I am incredibly blessed to be one of the children (#5) born to this woman, my mother, Doris Lewis, aka Granny.
My mom has taught me more about serving others and giving sacrificially than any other woman I know. She also has taught me how to work hard, how to create things, like meals and clothing, with my hands, and how to be there when others need help and support. She has taught me to be thrifty and sensible, faithful to God, and loyal to my family - even when they let me down.
Her children arise and call her blessed.
Proverbs 31:28
I am only one of many, many people positively impacted by my mother. At her surprise 80th birthday party, we listed the things we love about her. The list was long and heart-felt, and even the newest members to the family (by marriage) had incredible things to say about her. Nineteen of the 27 people at the gathering would not exist if it weren't for my mother, and my husband insists that although he is not her descendant, he wouldn't exist without her either.
I thank God for a godly mother and the direct impact she has on my life and the indirect impact she has on everyone that her children and grandchildren meet because of her influence on us. The wisdom of her life well-lived inspires me to humble myself before God and be used for His glory, not for mine, to find joy in the simple things, and to be content with what I have.
Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.
Proverbs 31:29
What a blessing! Enjoy her!
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