PEA RIDGE — This past weekend was not the best I have had. Saturday was the 13th anniversary of my mom’s passing.
For whatever reason, this one hit me really hard and I took to my bed for part of the day. Then on Sunday, my sister phoned to tell me that one of our cousins had passed away. He had been ill for some time so I believe it was a blessing. Later, when one of my sons called to wish me “Happy Mother’s Day,” I was telling him that my mother would have been so disappointed in my behavior on Saturday. In my mother’s world you just pulled yourself together and got on with life. There was no sitting around feeling sorry for yourself when there was work to be done.
I went on to tell him that this cousin had thought of my mom as his mom also.
His own mother died when he and his siblings were very young and Mother helped raise them until their dad remarried. That conversation lead to my telling him how hard the people of my parent’s generation had it - no modern conveniences, no taking a day off because you had a head-ache or any other ailment for that matter. The chickens had to be fed, the cows milked, the garden planted/plowed and water carried up hill to fill the big black kettle and wash tubs on laundry day.
I don’t remember my mother ever having timeto sit down with a book and read. And, even if she had had the time, I don’t remember there being a library near us until I was 9 years old. People of my generation who come into the library often tell me how much they wished they had had access to a library like ours when they were growing up. My mom would drive us to our local library once a week and wait patiently for my sister and I to choose five or six books.
Those books opened up a whole new world for me.
It saddens me that the kids today don’t experience the wonder of a good book. But I can hope that they will download a book on one of their electronic devices and read a chapter or two. The important thing is that they read and I guess it really doesn’t matter ifthey read a printed page or if they read a page on their Nook!
Please parents, encourage your children to read.
There are many good books at the library and we are trying hard to keep up with the popular books for children, teens and young adults. Just tell us what books you would like to see in the library and we will do our best to get a copy on the shelf.
Don’t forget to stop in and take a look at the quilt we are raffling off. Tickets are only $1 each or 6 for $5.
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Mother’s Day!
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Editor’s note: Peggy Maddox is the librarian of the Pea Ridge Community Library. She can be reached at P.O. Box 9, Pea Ridge, AR 72751.
Opinion, Pages 4 on 05/16/2012