Footsteps

I had a mother who gave birth to me and a mother who raised me. A mother from whom I inherited things, and a mother from whom I learned things. A mother I knew and a mother I didn't. A mother who let me go, and a mother who took me in. And I have loved and lost them both.

There is a Gary Chapman song which always makes me think of my mothers. It's called Sweet Jesus. The song is a story about a bridge falling and the rescue of a baby boy, and there's a part at the end:

I miss my mother and the brave old man
Though I never knew them
They are the soul inside the man I am
I bear their dreams
And I am walking in their footsteps
I am talking to their God

From the little I know about my first mother, I know that she was a Christian and wanted me to have a Christian family. My second mother was a great example to me of someone who loved the Lord. Through five years of suffering through Cancer and all that went with it, not only did she not abandon her faith, it grew so much stronger. She took every opportunity to share her faith with others. She was already bold, but she became bolder.

I like to think that my mothers are the "soul inside the [woman] I am" and that "I bear their dreams;" that "I am walking in their footsteps" and "talking to their God." It makes me feel connected to them; like a part of them remains with me, even though I can't see or talk to them now.

Though these two women never met, they had the same wish for me. And now it's up to me to follow the path they showed me.