SUPER STAR PATIENT AWARD

no one ever wants to hear

the dreaded ugly "C" word

CANCER,

especially in connection with a loved one.

BUT

if one did,

i would hope that it would follow the course

as that of MY MOTHER

*early detection

*family fast

*aggressive treatment

*a fantabulous doctor

*an amazing surgeon

*a five star hotel

(did i say hotel?

i meant an anything but resemble a hospital) 

*a bold decision

*friendly nurses

*direct nurses

*dream team support system

*power of the priesthood

*unlimited prayers

*and by all means

the most cheerful, positive, proactive patient
JOANNE

talk about sense of humor...
"careful not to mess up my hair"
and
"oh not the hair net photo...you better not instagram this"

minutes before anesthesia and surgey... check out that smile !
in the waiting room
hung a beautiful quilt
bearing the words:
"cancer is so limited...

it cannot destroy love
it cannot shatter hope
it cannot corrode faith
it cannot kill friendship
it cannot suppress memories
it cannot silence courage
it cannot invade the soul
it cannot conquer the spirit
yes, cancer is so limited !

 as i observed her bedside manner,
i learned a great deal 
about how to treat others...

"good morning...
and what is your name?

that is a lovely color on you !

do you have a family?

what a beautiful name.

you are a lovely person.

you have such a bright personality..."
and on and on and on.
she addressed each and every one
by their name...
no wonder everyone loves
JOANNE

phone calls galore

flowers some more


cards to share

and continued prayers

began to pour in.
her HART was full of gratitude
and her soul full of SUNSHINE

 my mom

lit up the room

with

cheer,

kindness,

love,

hope,

and a SUPER STAR 
ATTITUDE !

i did not need her doctor to tell me that,
though he did give her the award...
he came early with his team
probably expecting to find her lying
in bed asleep.
when he pulled back the curtain,
there was my mom standing
face to face with them all.
i think she startled them...

i could not have been more proud.

i may have missed the televised 

miss america pagent,

but not the 

miss america in room 5512.

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MOTHER'S DAY

a tribute to MOTHER'S everywhere

most especially

my own

100 words?
1000 words?
not even a 100,000,000,000 words

would be adequate for all the wondrous things that could be said about my

MOTHER

100 words would just not be suffice

nonetheless,

i tried...

even knowing

i do not need to win a contest 

to know that 

my MOTHER is truly the prize

i tried...

even knowing

i do not need accolades

for well penned words about my MOTHER'S

choices and quintessential qualities

i tried...

simply

to acknowledge MY MOTHER,

i tried...

so she

would know 

i would do anything to be able to get her something of value

in my "drummer boy" days

i tried...

so that my MOTHER would know

i think she is deserving of the contest

The Question was

What Makes Your Mom Special?

First thoughts:

you can't MAKE MOMS

they make YOU

and

you can't MAKE a MOM Special

and so my response followed:

"What Makes Your Mom Special?"

Nothing MAKES her special.

She just IS SPECIAL

and to the very core of her being.

Not only is she an outstanding MOTHER to me,

GRANDMOTHER to my son,

wife to my father,

daughter to her 96 year old MOTHER

and a friend to all,

but a light to all that cross her path

be it the mailman,

the woman taking her order at the DQ,

the maid in the hotel room,

the people in the waiting area...

even the robotic automated voice on the phone

loves it when my MOM calls.

Lady Di was the People's Princess

My Mom is the People's Mom

Thousands of miles all over the world

to be in attendance to the greatest and the smallest of events

all in efforts to show of her love and support

(and not just for her children
 

but to the many missionairies,

students,
youth,

nieces and nephews...)

while

always 

 a MOTHER of devotion.

Her JOY is giving happiness to her children.

She shares in their dreams, hopes, hurts, sicknesses, worries

and celebrations.

Others 

are all the better for having been in her presence

and she always leaves a place better than she found it.

Nothing she does is just ordinary,

in fact it is over the top extraordinairre.

My MOTHER

takes class to a whole new level.

No wonder she is invited to speak on

manners,

love,

and charity.

Do you know what a gift it is to venture out into the world

and have people tell me how much they love my MOM

 to never have to worry about my MOM

being an embarrassment

to have several wish my MOM had been their MOM?

If my MOTHER'S name were in a thesaurus

class

virtue

kindness

charity

happy

unselfish

genuine

caring

positive

hopeful

faithful

strong

humble

and many more synonyms would follow

I love you MOM

How on earth did I ever have the blessing and good fortune 

of belonging to you?

you are beaYOUtiful and beloved among MOTHER'S

and it is I

that GETS to call you

MOM

A BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION OF WOMEN

 i was invited by three generation

 of WOMEN

to celebrate one of the most amazing

societies of WOMEN

on march 16, 2013

at 10:00 am-noon

the three generations
 of WOMEN

grandma maxine garff

mother joanne garff hart

and sister michelle hart bodine

This free collage made with Smilebox

the celebration

the BIRTHDAY of the relief society

an organization for WOMEN

where 

charity never faileth

the speaker

sheri dew
as in
"dew as i'm dewing"
recognize the value of
WOMANHOOD
uplifting

edifying

reminders

that we are daughters

of heavenly father

who loves us
while challenging the world's beliefs
*that WOMEN of our faith are oppressed

there was a beautiful musical

if i could hie to kolob

played by lovely WOMEN

on stringed instruments

colorful cupcakes

delicately frosted

by the hands

of a 16 year old WOMAN

made for a delightful

table decoration

and a delicious refreshement

(fun tablecloth pattern)

i am so grateful that i attended.

happy BIRTHDAYrelief society

then off to grandma's lovely home

where family photographs rest
in every room

the dining room's
beautiful centerpiece
from
john and angie marriott


i was intrigued by the simple glass vase
that carefully embrace the delicate flowers


debbie and ron harrison's bulbs at christmas
have come into bloom
for grandma's march BIRTHDAY

grandma's garden room
filled with life
and femininity



emphasizes a WOMAN'S love for intrinsic beauty


and finally
grandma's library
where a brightly colored bouquet
of unique and interesting flowers
adorn the study desk

in the distance my eye takes hold
 of a well organized library of books

a pink slip of paper here

a pink slip of paper there

as grandma's christmas gift

to her

children

and 

grandchildren

michelle and myself find

the browsing

of so many handsome books

classics

gospel oriented

personal improvement

historical

famous speeches

to be addicting

as well as endearinng

what a treat!
tomorrow

is

grandma garff's 96th birthday

born on ST. PATRICK'S DAY

as a subtle reminder of how blessed

i am to know her

and have her to call

friend and grandmother

can you think of a better way to celebrate

such an amazing WOMAN?

i couldn't either

happy BIRTHDAY

grandma

*oppressed
as a child-spoke in church, talks in primary, pray on primary,
as a young woman-secretary, seminary council, spoke in church, sang in church, prayed in church, young women's recognition award, led the singing, played the piano, temple recommend, temple work, geneology work, youth conference committee,visiting teacher, secret granddaughter, relief socity instructor, homemaking leader, sunday school teacher, family home evening coordinator, young women guest speaker, primary 2nd counselor, primary president, primary choristor, young women advisor, young women teacher, gospel doctrine teacher, nursery leader, homemaking and enrichment, primary teacher, young women's camp director, young women's secretary,
 primary teacher, mother, wife, college graduate, master of education degree, continuing education, third grade educator, sixth grade educator, flight attendant for delta, special education assistant, room mom, temple patron, and witness of christ
oppressed, hardly