Mothering Day

     Today is Mother's Day. It's a day I like to refer to as Mothering Day. Aunt's, teachers, sisters, Sunday School teachers, loving neighbors, whether they have been given the opportunity to bear children or not, have been mothering to me and mothering to my children. I love and appreciate their nurturing ways.
     My own mother is in her 80th year. She is in the twilight of her life. She is becoming frail, forgetful, and yet remains full of faith. My mom was born in 1936 to George and Katherine Boyce in what then was known as the Riverbottom but is referred to now as the Riverwoods of Provo Utah. She was christened Barbara Ann Boyce in St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Provo Utah. The same church I attend today for meetings and services as a part of my membership in the the Utah Valley Interfaith Association.
     The home she was raised in was an old railroad shack. My grandpa purchased it and transported down Provo Canyon with a wagon and team of horses to the Boyce property. To this day the little home remains, and is a bit northwest of University Ave behind Will's Pit Stop.  When my mom was young an addition was made on the shack turned home, which included a bathroom. The first bathroom for that home.
     Mom, though a member of the Episcopal Church was the speaker at her graduation from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Seminary in 1953. Grandpa and Grandma Boyce both attended. They thought it was pretty cool their Episcopal daughter was giving the graduation speech at a Mormon Seminary graduation.  At age 18,  mom moved away from home to a job and apartment in Salt Lake City.  There she was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was a gutsy move, one that changed the dynamics of the relationship with her parents and siblings. It's now been 62 years since my mom kept her faith while at the same time changing her religion.
     As much as I owe my dad for his influence on my chaplaincy, I owe my mom for my love and appreciation about other religions especially those considered High Church.  I experienced the beauty of religious art, cathedrals, and sanctuaries from the times she took me out of school for my religious  education when we lived in Europe. It was my mom who signed me up for Catholic Vacation Bible School.
     On this Mother's Day I pay tribute to my mom. She's a one in a million kind of mom. I love her.