In Celebration of Mother's Day....

Mom's High School Yearbook Pic

I've written plenty about my mom on this blog, but since today is Mother's Day, I thought it fitting to pay tribute to her. 

Ann Gladys Allen Stancil was born on July 1, 1929 in rural Franklin County, NC to Atlas Allen and wife Ethel Davis. She was is the oldest of 3 daughters and by all accounts, the most, ummm...spirited. 

Gladys had a mind of her own. She had a sometimes difficult relationship with her mother. I get that, because Mom was not always the easiest person to live with. She was highly opinionated, extremely stubborn, and beyond determined. It was often her way or the highway. 

In spite of her personality "quirks", she had a heart of gold and enough love to fill the oceans. She was generous with what little she had and always ready to listen...so long as you were ready to hear what she had to say.

In mid-life, mom struggled with depression and alcoholism. She came by it honestly as she came from a very long line of alcoholics. She tried many times to stop drinking but there was just ONE thing that finally made her successful. That was her grandson, Cameron. She stopped drinking cold turkey when he was born. 

I did not realize when she passed in April of 1997 how much I would miss her every single day. I still hear her voice in my head and often I think I see her in a crowd.  Wishful thinking. I wish I could have just 10 more minutes with her to tell her how much I love her and to bring her up to date on how her beloved grandson is doing. 

But I suspect she already knows that.