Utah Mother of the Year’s Speech

This is the speech Dixie Clifford, Utah Mother of the  Year, 2009, will present at the National American Mothers Convention in Portland, April 22-26:

It is a pleasure to be here with all of you today, to honor and celebrate motherhood.

In the context of Home as a Garden and mother as gardener, I am reminded of a fable.

Once upon a time there was a mother who, with her husband, had four children. She felt they were remarkable and beautiful and wanted to cultivate in them true values to last a lifetime. So as soon as they were old enough, she sent them out to view the large garden and orchard in the field behind their home.

As it happened, the first child went out in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in the summer and the fourth in the fall. When they had all returned, she called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first child said the garden was quiet and cold; the trees and plants were crusted with snow and ice cycles.

The second child noted the garden was covered w/ a carpet of new green seedlings, the trees with green buds, the air was sweet and warm with promise.

The third child said, “Oh no, I saw the garden laden with plants and the orchard with blossoms; it smelled wonderful and birds were singing ! !.

The fourth child disagreed, ”My garden was full of plump vegetables and trees drooping with fruit – there was abundance and plenty for all.”

The mother answered, “Each of you is right ! But you’ve seen only one season in the garden’s cycle. We cannot judge a garden or a tree or a person by one season. The essence of who we are and the pleasure, joy and service we can give in life can only be realized when we understand all of the seasons. Because in this life, we will encounter each one.”

She admonished them, “Don’t give up in the cold despair of winter, you’ll miss the promise of spring, the beauty of summer and the fulfillment of fall and its harvest.

How have I reaped what I have sown in the garden of my home? I taught that there is a time to prepare, a time to work, a time to seek fulfilment, a time to know and appreciate joy. My message to my grown children, their spouses and my grandchildren will always be to live simply and fully, speak kindly, care deeply, love generously, serve diligently, and trust daily in God.

Looking today at my children, I realize the growing season we spent together is the most important work I will ever do in my life. Their harvest – and mine is their happiness, their families, their success and the contributions they make to the lives of others. They are my children, my angels, and now my friends through all the seasons in the garden of our lives.