Apron Strings

May 31^st, 1996, Mom threw me a wonderful “little girl” 18^th birthday party. All my girl friends were invited and we played games, ate cake, made silly necklaces, got loot bags; it was everything that I had asked for. But, something that I hadn’t asked for was a little ceremony – the “Ceremony of the Strings” – that my Mom performed. The Ceremony had originated with my great grandmother and marked the time in a girl’s life where she begins to assert her independence. At the time I thought that it was silly, but now plan on keeping the tradition with my children. When I look back and reflect on that day, and on the ceremony that was intended to mark the beginning of my independence, I now realize how much those apron strings are still intact.

That is something that I will miss so much about Mom – she always made sure that every birthday was special and we knew how much she loved and appreciated us.