Dearest mom, Marion Jean Gregory Ziska Gregory…..

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2012!

I wish for  my mother…. All the happiness and love a daughter can give…. I  wish for you that  all of your hopes and dreams  will be  realized…  I wish for you, joy and happiness, laughter and love, financial independence , prosperity,  freedom from worries and an abundance of everything your heart desires…. …  a youthful exuberance …in spirit…. Knowing how much you are loved… how  valued you are to all who have known you….  your presence has…. Made such a positive difference in my life…. and I wanted to thank you  for enriching our lives in so many ways…. 

You and dad gave us such an  amazing opportunity  by  taking our entire family to Saudi…( with Aramco…)  to grow up in a very safe environment that enriched our lives soooo much…. But mom. I have to say… . you were the one who  took full advantage of making sure that we were able to go on the trips with you… to see all the magnificent sights … to make lifelong memories … to  have so many varied experiences…  interesting cultures… and  even  exotic foods….

You tell me all the time that you love me more than I will ever know…. and I always want to make sure you know overflows with gratitude  for all that you have done in my life …and  that I want to thank you for everything” more than you will ever know… “   

Dearest mom, I gave you a book  for Mother’s Day a while ago  …  titled:   A mother’s legacy,  your life story in your  own words the book was separated into different sections the last section entitled “inspiration:   it is a  miracle  how a life can be touched so deeply by one caring gesture, one small kindness at a time.”

For the insert of the book I wrote:  remember this special day… all for you… the loving mixture of family, of memories  family of memories,  and love,  the warmth of a hug… the kiss hello the joy of having loved ones near to celebrate…. knowing you….. and loving you…. we are so  blessed to have had such a gift!

Dear mom,  you’re the light that inspires hope, dreams, and wishes for futures and lives we could never have imagined possible….. your gifts to your children, your friends, and  your community are so abundant there marked only by the  stars in the sky… just as you are the star in our lives… may  you shine forever….. all my love,  Mary Jean Ziska

I look at these questions and think of the answers you would write concerning my family and childhood,    and your own childhood…   of how lives are intertwines with experiences and I think of how these questions could be answered  us…by  your children: (the three daughters:  Maura, Mattie , Mary Jean)  how the answers would  draw a picture and illustrate the amazing life  you  provided for us…. All  the opportunities …. And the blessings  just by  having you as a parent…

How can I express to you how my life was made wonderful and great through the opportunities you provided… you gave us  advantages that not all people have…

One of the questions in the book asked who has made the greatest impact on your life?

I would have to say, one of the people who made an indelible mark upon my life has been my family with my mother as the matriarch she has been a source of comfort, inspiration, guidance, a constant  source of love,  encouragement all of my life  and my life has been made  better because she  was  a part of it….

another question what are the most important characteristics of a good friend?

Two other questions  under the topic of events:   do you enjoy travel why or why not? What was the most fun, interesting or exciting places you’ve ever visited?

Please share a cherished memory from a family holiday celebration:

Did you begin any new traditions with your children

Is there anything you know now that you wish you’d known when you first became a mother?

What similarities do you see between yourself and your children

what are your most vivid memories of your children’s earliest years

what activities did you most enjoy with your children when they were young

how did becoming a mother change your life

in what ways are you like your mother what is a favorite memory of your mother grandma Gregory

what was your mother’s attitude toward life how did her attitude affect you

Mom I thought  it would be fun …. And more productive if instead of my rambling on about how much I love and cherish you…. we could answer these together…. On Christmas…. All these questions  sparks so many memories and thoughts that I wanted to be able to share  them with you…

 

The true test of a mother to me is 1 Kings 16:28

then two women who would become mothers out of wedlock came and stood before the King and one woman said oh my Lord, I  and  this women dwell in one house; I was delivered of a child with her in the house. The third day after  I was delivered, this woman also  delivered. We were together; no stranger was with us, just we two in the house. And this woman’s child died in the night because she lay on him. At midnight  she  took my son from  beside me while your handmaiden slept and laid  her  dead child in my arms . When I rose to nurse my child behold he was dead but when I had considered him in the morning behold it was not the son I had born  but  the other woman said no! The living one is my son and the dead one is your son! And this one said no! But the dead son is your son and the living is my son. Thus they spoke before the King.  That  this is my son that is alive and yours is the dead one. The other woman says no! But your son is the dead one and mine is the living one. And the king said bring me a sword, and they brought a sword to the King. The King said divide the living child in two and give half to the one and half to the other than the mother of the living child said to the king for she yearned over her son, “oh my Lord give her the living baby and by  no means slay him” but the other said “let him not be mine or yours but divide him.”   And the king said ” give her who pleads for his life the living baby by no means slay him. She is the
child’s mother”  and all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had made and they stood in awe of him for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice

this  story was  about  King Solomon

the Testament of a true mother to me has been  in the  end …the selfless  gift of wanting a child to be happy healthy with a prosperous life….  the  Testament of the mother is what she will do to make sure her child is able to follow dreams , hopes, goals, and passions… … Without hurting anyone, with the sole intention of making lives better, a true mother goes to any length to not only protect her child… support her child… but also to make their lives better…

Looking back, My mother provided us with such an amazing childhood…. I  could have never dreamed of all the  opportunities she provided for us…. the plan she had for making our life experiences extraordinary…. for fulfilling and exceeding expectations of not only a motherly love but of exceeding a mother’s  capabilities…. You were the village that raised a child… actually three children…  and we learned so much… and  am so  grateful  for so  the many  wonderful experiences…  

I love you now and  always…  god bless, merry Christmas.. and happy new year… luv mary jean Ziska

Mom I’ll add to this note once we have had a chance to chat about  all those questions… HA!