The Best Mother's Day Present

I must admit I was disappointed with Dylan's effort this Mother's Day. I was handed a plastic baggie with a string, macaroni and a bead. "What's this" I asked him. "Oh, we were supposed to make our mom a necklace at school but I ran out of time. So, here it is!" he replied. Needless to say I sat him down and made him finish my present. Along with the necklace he handed me a homemade card. "Finally something personal and from the heart," I thought. It was blank on the outside and I opened it up to reveal it was blank on the inside except for a flap. I opened the flap and....nothing. "What's this", I asked him. Oh, we were supposed to press a flower inside the card and write a Mother's Day message, but I ran out of time". I held my tongue but I was secretly hurt at the lack of effort put out by my child.

Exactly one week after Mother's Day I am in the kitchen trying to made a special family dinner by recreating my mother-in-law's wonderful recipe for creme brulee. It wasn't going to good. I had ran out of maple syrup during the process and I had bought almond extract instead of vanilla extract. Out of exasperation I flung up my hands and muttered to myself, "Why do I bother!" Dylan, who had been reading his book beside me, looked up and said point blank, "Because you are a kind person and you like to make other people happy" (end quote). I stared at him with my mouth open and thought, "It may be one week too late but this is the Best Mother's Day Present Ever!"