The angel said to the Lord …

Angel: You must create a woman so she may bring a child into the world. She shall be called a mother.

God: I can do that. Is there anything else a mother will need to be but to give birth?

Angel: Give her six hands.

God: Why six?

Angel: Because a mother will have to do many things with her hands. Wash clothes, prepare food, cook dinners, clean her home, grow gardens, and comfort her children. She will need many hands to manage many tasks at the same time.

God: I’m guessing she’ll need other things, too.

Angel: Give her the power for unconditional love, especially when her children are most unlovable. She’ll need the strength of a lion, but the heart of a lamb. She will be strong enough to fight for her family, but soft enough to wipe away their tears.

God: Is that it?

Angel: No, there’s more. She will need the ability to fix things with tools, in case a man is unavailable.

God: You’re asking for a lot.

Angel: A mother must be a lot. She’ll need eyes on the back of her head so she can watch a pot of boiling water and at the same time see what her 4-year-old child is doing behind her back.

God: Six hands and four eyes? She might be scaring people with that kind of look.

Angel: She won’t care. Sometimes, she’ll go to the store with her hair unkempt and no makeup on her face.

God: All this attention I give to creating a mother will make a man feel poorly.

Angel: No man is poor who has a godly mother. A man will come from her body, a place where she nurtured him long before he came into the world. He should be grateful to her for his life.

God: What should I do about her character?

Angel: Make her a heavenly saint to live on your earth. She should have a smile that feels like a warm hug she will bring laughter to her children’s saddest hours.

God: You said she’ll make the food to feed her family. They can feed themselves from anywhere. Why must she feed them?

Angel: She will make food that will please the palate like only a mother can. Her homemade dishes will be remembered by her loved ones for the rest of their lives.

God: Should I make all mothers beautiful?

Angel: When her children look at their mother, they are looking at the most beautiful love they will ever know. Therefore, all mothers will be beautiful.

God: Will a mother’s food be the only thing that will make memories?

Angel: After her children grow and leave the home and their mother has come to heaven, whenever a difficult time arises, let the children remember the wisdom that she shared about the dark days that will surely come. Her advice will help them find their way back into your light.

God: I surmise that nothing will come easily to a mother.

Angel: For the sake of her family, she will forsake her own dreams. She may struggle with poverty and sadness and find no escape from reality. Yet, she will persevere like the wild salmon swimming against the river’s current. She’ll fight to survive like the prey running from the tiger’s claws. She will never quit going, never quit loving because you will give her the fortitude of 1,000 Kodiak bears. You will give her the love of a mothering elephant that never leaves her baby’s side to protect it from what dangers may lurk in the jungle.

God: Therefore, I must make a mother in my image.

Angel: Yes, Lord. Let her arms be like yours as a haven for the hurting, a place to cry, a welcome home, a sanctuary that reminds her children that no matter how bad life gets, a mother’s arms can heal their pain.

God: Will she have peace of mind once her children leave the nest?

Angel: A mother will fill with tears because she knows that when her children walk into the world alone, their innocence that she had guarded with all her life will be lost. She will know what adversity her children will have to face and her fear for their safety and well-being will keep her awake at night.

God: If I make a great mother for every child, there will be no suffering in the world.

Angel: You’re perfect, Lord, but you didn’t make the perfect father, did you? So, you won’t make the perfect mother. Many children will leave the womb unloved, grow angry, do evil things. The good ones will be your extraordinary creations.

God: Well then, the best of all mothers will leave their legacies with their children. No man or woman shall be happy without a mother’s love. When a mother dies after she says goodbye to her children, may their hearts not grieve. She shall come into my arms. I will welcome her home.

Angel: There are two more requests I have for mothers, Lord.

God: Speak, my angel.

Angel: Make a day in the spring of each season when robins greet the sunrise and flowers bloom in warm afternoons, a day mothers shall be honored. A day that shall be called Mother’s Day.

God: I will bless them all on that day. Now, I must get to work. I will create a mother with six hands, four eyes, the strength of a lion, the heart of a lamb, and the unconditional love of an elephant. And your other request?

Angel: Take care of your vineyards Lord. Mothers should be rewarded from the fruits of your labor and the fruits of theirs. Let them enjoy wine made from grapes that have been touched by your loving hands.

And let it be done that the Lord thy God created motherhood.

Happy Mother’s Day, ladies!

Email Rich Strack at richiesadie11@gmail.com