Meema

Because Mother's Day is this weekend I thought I would dedicate a post to my dearest Meema. What do people see when they see my Meema... a little, dark haired, perfect postured, energetic woman. Let me tell you a bit about her, and I will tell you what I see.

Those of you who know my mother you know that she is a race horse. She is constantly doing something. She works at every school in Winslow, AZ. She teaches elementary school music, is the director of the junior high and high school choirs, directs the high school plays, and fits in anything she possibly can before she goes to bed. When she goes to the store, there are a ton of students that wave and say "Hi Mrs. Ricks!!!" It's absolutely adorable! :) She was my teacher from 6th to 12th grade and I loved every minute of it.



Since birth I've heard TONS of people tell me that I look like my Mom. I just got used to everyone mentioning it growing up. I have realized that Meema and I have more similarities than just physical traits. Just to name a few...
We both cry. I think that all the emotion that was supposed to be shared between me and my siiiister was put ALL on me. This is definitely from my Meema. Both of us just have soft spots and can cry. She makes me cry and I make her cry (well sometimes).
We love to run. I love running with Meema. :) It's the best.
We love to sing. No I didn't get my Meema's beautiful singing voice, but I can keep a tune.


Meema is extremely supportive. When I ran cross country and track for Mesa Community College she would give me words of advice. They were inspirational text messages. That may sound funny, but I would read them to my teammates and it would help them as well. She would spend so much time thinking about what to say to me, and it felt good knowing that I was in her thoughts. Those text messages are what got me through a lot of my races. Many times I would cry reading them. Knowing that my Meema was cheering me on, even if she wasn't their physically, was the greatest feeling in the world. I will always thank her for that.

My Meema is the greatest listener. I think that anyone who knows her can vouch for me on that. There were times growing up that I wanted to leave after church was over, and there was Meema, just standing there (with perfect posture) listening to someone talk to her. Meema didn't say a word, she just listened. We would get phone calls a lot of people wanting to talk to her, or for her to just listen to them. Living at home I don't think that I really appreciated that trait so much. Since I've left home, I admire Meema for that so much more. She doesn't mind taking time out of her busy day to talk to me. :)

Meema loves her job. If anyone doesn't get enough credit for what she does, it's Meema. That may sound ridiculous to some people, but I believe it whole heartedly. She practically lives at the schools. You think I'm joking. Nope, definitely not joking. Practically 24 hours a day my Mom is doing something for her classes: recording music, reading scripts, play practices, and preparing lessons.
I could talk about my Meema all day, but I will just keep it to a little post. :) When people meet my Meema, they see a little, dark haired, perfect postured, energetic woman. When I look at my Meema I see the strongest person I know. I hope one day to be like her. Thank you Meema for everything. I love you! Happy Mother's Day.
Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there. :)