Saanich Peninsula Presbyterian

 

The link for this week's live-stream service is here.

Sunday was Mothers Day and once again we had to find new ways to mark the occasion. Taking mom out for lunch? Not allowed. Family BBQ in the backyard? Not allowed. Everyone turning up to take mom to church? Not allowed. There is always the telephone, a card in the mail, a zoom call ...but there is no hug.

Near the end of our Lenten Devotional this line appeared " paint a picture of one like a small, frightened child burying their face in their mother’s apron, hiding from the fearful things around them."

The writer had a lot more to say about Psalm 91 but in our group we lingered over the frightened child running to hide her face in her mother's lap. The image conjured up the scent of baking bread and fresh cookies. Our memories of a mom include homemade treats. A kiss and a treat were a panacea for most childhood hurts -- along with that all-encompassing hug.

For Linda the smell of lily of the valley also conjures the comfort of a mother. Perhaps that's why she planted them along the north wall of the church.

I can't see a lemon meringue pie without thinking of my mom. A sensual hug, perhaps.

One of the practices at SPPC in better times was flower baskets for mothers from the Sunday School. Though not a mother, the Living Flame Choir always made sure I got a planter as well. It was like a hug from a dozen small arms. As I look out on my flower beds now I see pinks (dianthus) and pansies that I set out from those planters still growing, still blooming, still bestowing beauty and still warming my heart. A reminder for mothers and other mentors that the seed you plant in a child's mind will last long past the moment.

For Linda and Janet, the hymn 

When Mothers of Salem, is a like a musical hug on Mothers Day. I can't find a congregational version, but hope they can enjoy this one.

We all look forward to the day when hugs are live and in-person. A friend of mine posted on facebook the other day that she'd hugged her parents for the first time in 19 months. They'd all been vaccinated. Who would have imagined that we'd count the months between hugs?

Yet God knows our need. Isaiah 66:13 As a mother comforts her child,

    so will I comfort you;

Happy Mothers Day--and a virtual hug from SPPC.