Same Kind of Different

One of my favorite things to do growing up was to try on my mom's clothes while she was at work. It was the 1970's, and she had the silkiest blouse with the sunset on the back, white bell-bottom slacks, and Candie's high heels. Being a big-footed girl, they almost fit, even when I was 10. What didn't fit were the bras, which I would wear backwards with the cups hanging off my shoulder blades. They totally looked like they fit from the front, though...
My mom is one of the coolest people I know, even today. Her house is calming to walk into, and she has the decorations that I look at in the magazines but don't buy, like solar-powered wind chimes. My sister and I joke that someday we'll be as hip as our mom.
My mom and I are alike and different in the same way, if that makes any sense. Like two people approaching the center of the road from two different directions. She is a Buddhist, not a Christian, but lives out Christ-like qualities with more compassion than many Christians I know. She brings chili and hot cocoa to homeless men who "live" on the corner near the downtown hospital where she works. She keeps extra gloves on her seat in case she seems someone without a pair. She's even been known to pick up a hitch hiker (gasp!) on frigid nights if she had a good feeling about it. I have a heart for people in need and know that I get that from her.

The best thing about my mom is the way she supports me 100% to pursue and follow what I believe, because she wants me to be happy and fulfilled, whatever that looks like. I can't quite return that sentiment, and believe what I believe to be true.

Back to the clothes though...some things never change. I am sitting in a hotel room right now typing this at the She Speaks Conference in North Carolina. Before I left, I did a little shopping in my mom's closet and borrowed an adorable bright pink sweater, which is now lost in the airport in Milwaukee somewhere. If you could pray that the sweater finds its way to the lost and found for me to get Sunday night, I would sure appreciate that.

This post is part of the Third Thursday Blog Hop with Hearts at Home Ministry. Check out some of the other blogs...I'm sure you'll see you and your mom in there somewhere.