#48 Ginelle Britton

It's hard to effectively portray how i feel about My Mom......

But here are some favorite experiences with Mom.

Emmy and I were probably three and five. It must have been some time in January because it had been raining for like a week straight. Mom gave us our bath and put us in her bed. Telling us we had to stay in the bed and be big girls. Then, her and Jess pulled their coats and boots on and, went out into the pounding rain. They went to help our neighbors down in the groves that were affected by the flooding of the San Lorenzo River. The memory is a little blurred but I remembered being unable to sleep in mom's big bed. The rain was pounding so hard on the roof. Emmy had fallen asleep right away but I just laid there and imagined mom and Jess pulling people out of the river and saving lives. I imagined them having extra strength and defeating the natural disaster all by themselves. I thought of them as super heroes because that's what they were to be. No evil or foe was too great for Jess and Mom!

I also remember we were all helping make dinner in our narrow kitchen. Emmy, trying to help, got the box of noodles. Not realizing one side was open Em dumped the whole box on the floor. She almost started to cry I think. Mom quickly assessed the situation and concluded the mess would not be allowed to get us down. She put a huge smile on her face and said Oh it’s the spaghetti dance...and proceeded to dance on the spaghetti covered floor. After the initial shock of her reaction both Em and I joined in. Dinner was a little late that night and we had something other then spaghetti. However, we learned some thing significant that night. We saw how a bad, frustrating thing can be changed into a great experience. She showed us life doesn't have to get us down. Dancing can be the best way to clean up spaghetti or change a bad attitude and chase away tears.

When I moved to college Mom helped me move all (seven tons) of my belongings into my first apartment. She made friends with all the guys in the complex. In addition to trying to get them to ask me out, she had them make improvements to my crappy little flat. They painted my bed frame, re-caulked my sink and changed out the switch plates...mom gets it done.

What a great lady! I'm glad I have been able to learn so closely from her. I love how optimistic she is and that she does what is needed in spite of the challenges that come up. She is the best mom and an even better friend.

I love my mom.

- Ginelle