Honoring Mom: My Hike on Trombatore Trail

An "Honor Hike" on Trombatore Trail

With mother’s day approaching, I have been thinking a lot about my mom, Audeen, who passed on to heaven in 1996, and I decided to dedicate this hike, and this post, to her.

And in her honor, I especially want to encourage the moms out there that have struggled with anxiety and depression as she did. Here are just a few things I want to say in her honor:

My mom was a kind and compassionate woman, wonderful with young children, and had a heart for the vulnerable and weak in the world. I fondly remember her faithful visits to the nursing home where she befriended an elderly woman who had no other visitors.

My mom encouraged me in athletics as a young girl (I was definitely a "tomboy"), and never discouraged me from pursuing adventure, even if she wasn’t able to purse those things in her life. I believe my love of animals and being out in nature came from her.

Although she carried a heavy burden of shame into her adult life, my mom did the best she could to overcome her difficult childhood and care for her family. She suffered from mental illness for much of her life, but didn’t give up in seeking help and treatment. For that I am so grateful.

Most of all, I am thankful that my mom (and dad) introduced me to Jesus, and lived out their faith in God, especially through adversity. That is a priceless gift.

She may not have received earthly accolades or seemed “successful” from the world's perspective, but her legacy of compassion and kindness still lives on in me and my sisters, and our children.

Her life ended way too early(age 60) due to cancer, but I am thankful that God preserved her life miraculously in 1979 (she almost died then), and that she lived to see her daughters finish college, marry, and have children.

I wish all of my children could have known their Grandma Audeen. But I believe they will someday in Heaven!

Today I am thankful and humbled by the legacy of my mom, and I pray that I can share the same compassion and perseverance through difficulty that my mom had.

And if you are a mom that is struggling, or wonder if you are making a difference in this world, let me encourage you:

You are so valued, and you matter to God, and to your family! Never give up, even in the struggle.

“But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.” (Psalm 103:17-18, ESV)