Book of Days

Seth and I keep this picture prominently displayed in our living room. It’s a photograph of Seth and his two sisters, circa 1975. Seth is the one on the floor, throwing a tantrum. Thompson Family legend states that this scene was the usual state of affairs in the house. This legend, accompanied by its photographic documentation, is a very big part of our decision not to have kids of our own, be they our own “biokids” (as Dan Savage calls them in his book The Kid) or adopted kids. The chances that our own kids would put us through the same misery that Seth’s parents had to endure is a risk neither of us is prepared to take.

I look at this picture sometimes and I think, “God bless Doreen.” Doreen is Seth’s mom. She was surprised with twins right on the heels of her first born child, and one of those twins was Seth. Seth, for the record, turned out to be quite a great guy. But certainly God bless Doreen and while we’re at it, God bless all the moms. Their job is not an easy one.

Perhaps Anna Jarvis was a challenging child, too. It was Anna who championed the idea of Mother’s Day and in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson, at Anna’s urging, designated the Second Sunday of May as an official holiday honoring our mothers. Anna, however, did not approve of what Mother’s Day quickly became: another big retail holiday. So if you want to keep to the traditional Anna Jarvis spirit of Mother’s Day, you’d do well to simply visit or call your mom and spend the day with her. That’s all Anna wanted the day to be.

Then again, if you put your mother through the things that Seth put his through, you might consider buying her a new car.