One year in the spring my female friend’s mother encouraged me to buy a tree for my mother to honor her on Mother’s Day.  I took this advice to heart, and I borrowed my female friend’s family station wagon and purchased a pink dogwood tree. My father in the years after this planting referred to the tree by the name of my female friend. My mother loved the tree, and though she and my female friend’s mother have both died, the dogwood tree that connected us all continues to bloom and grow.

For many years there has been a sweet spot in my heart for dogwood trees because of the ancient legend that connects the tree to Christ. The story suggests that it was from the wood of a dogwood tree that the cross was formed on which our Lord and Savior suffered and died. For many individuals Mother’s Day is a memorial experience because our mothers have died. Yet the memory of the dogwood tree given as a gift many years ago also reminds me of the Easter Jesus who continues to connect us in His love to our mothers and all our dearly departed ones. Because of Jesus our mothers are safe in God’s love, a love that they shared and a love that still sustains us both now and always. 

Mothers give us so many reasons to give thanks to God. Some have even suggested that Jesus himself had the ideal mother’s heart. Like a dedicated mother, Jesus’ life was filled with acts of sacrifice, love, understanding, patience and welcome for others. Perhaps it’s not surprising that Jesus had such a close relationship to His mother. Though Jesus may not have experienced the grief that comes with the death of a mother, I know in my heart that Jesus knows what it is that we experience when we grieve. I encourage you to take your experiences of gratitude and sorrow to Jesus in prayer. When we know Jesus’ loving presence in our lives in whatever form it takes, the continuing care of our mothers and all those who have loved us remains real and close at hand.

God Bless All Mothers!!