Keely’s Mama…

How is it that our own mothers never cease to amaze us? Just when you think you’ve got them figured out, they’ll surprise you once again. Keely’s mom turns the tables once more…

My Mom has taught me many things. Among them are the obligatory manners, reading skills, and good sleep habits that are requirements of most stellar mothers.

Mine also instilled in me a love of Elton John, lilacs, the ocean, and vintage clothing. (Although she might take exception to the “vintage” part – the suede jacket and Frye boots over which I drooled were mighty “contemporary” in her day. She might also not like the “in her day” part. Sorry, Mom.)

She always encouraged me to write what I know – even when every single thing I did and saw was painfully boring and obvious. She fostered my imagination by pretending to shop with me in the Princess House crystal catalog to furnish my dream house. And she always knew there was no better down time than snuggling on the couch in blankets – mugs of tea in hand – watching a Nick n’ Nora marathon. (Or NCIS. The woman has an addiction.)

But all schmaltz aside, when I tried to think of one defining “My Mom” moment, I kept coming back to a truly unsentimental and eye-poppingly awesome occasion.

My parents had taken all four of their grown daughters out for a meal a few years back. Now, this restaurant featured a billiards table in the lobby and, while none of us kids were slouches in the athletic department, we really had never played pool.

This did not stop us from playing the longest, most drawn-out game in which very few balls were in danger of being thwacked into a pocket.

The host announced that our table was ready. We told our parents we’d be right there. They agreed to give us a moment more. When it became painfully obvious that no one was going to win this game – potentially ever – my mother reminded us that we had a table and indeed, it was ready.

In a minute, we said. Someone has to win, we said.

With that, she took the cue stick from my sister and proceeded to Clear. The. Table.

Our table is ready, she said with a smile.

As we walked, astonished, into the dining room, my Dad leaned over and uttered a phrase that could work incredibly well as a metaphor for motherhood:

“Never play pool against your mother.”

– Keely, Lollygag Blog

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011 at 6:58 am. It is filed under Motherhood, Relationships and tagged with Friendships, Mothers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.