by the Rev. Dr. Ed Hird
Mother’s Day stirred up a favourite memory from my childhood: going on the Horseshoe Bay Ferry over to the Sunshine Coast, where my Grandma always served us freshly baked, hot apple pie. Grandma Hird baked some of the tastiest apple pies that I’ve ever eaten. But she always apologized about her apple pies, saying that the pastry didn’t turn out just right, or that she hadn’t baked enough pies for us. Our family usually needed to go on a diet for three weeks, just to recover from a weekend of Grandma Hird’s delicious cooking! Grandma always would tell us how fortunate she was to have such wonderful neighbours. She would comment on how caring and friendly they were to her. Whoever you were, Grandma Hird always made you feel special. With such a gift of hospitality, it was no wonder that so many young children in the neighbourhood ‘adopted’ her as their own grandma.
Even though she couldn’t read a note of music, Grandma Olive was an excellent pianist. As her eyesight became worse and she went into a care facility, her greatest regret was that she couldn’t play the piano any more, or bake apple pies for us. Grandma was such a loving person that she loved to give generously to others, and it hurt when she couldn’t. When my family and I would visit Grandma in the nursing home, she used to give our 3 boys money to go to MacDonald’s. She’d say: “I so miss not being able to cook apple pies for you, like when Grandpa was alive.” Grandma Hird really missed her husband since he’d passed away.
Grandma Olive didn’t have an easy life. She had to quit school at age 15 to look after her 3 younger brothers. Her mother, who was an Ensign in the Salvation Army and knew William & Catherine Booth personally, had died suddenly in the 1918 flu epidemic. Her father was away overseas at war. So Grandma Olive had to function as “the mother” to her younger brothers for the next six years until her father remarried. She had a tough time understanding why such a wonderful woman as her mother would be taken from her. But she never stopped trusting that she would meet her Mom some day in heaven. Years later, when my Grandma’s sight was going, she gave me her mother’s bible. I have always treasured this gift, as it includes some actual sermons and poems written by her mom. ‘The cross is a mystery’, wrote her mother, ‘until you take it up.’ Grandma Olive knew from personal experience that being a mother often involves taking up unexpected crosses in one’s life.
When Grandma Olive died in 1990, I had the unique privilege of taking her funeral service. It was a hard thing to do, but also very meaningful. Years later, I give thanks for what a loving, gracious grandmother she was to me. When I wonder why my father learned to respect women, I know that it came from his deep respect for his mother Olive who totally devoted her life to her family. I firmly believe that much of my father’s self-confidence as an adult came from the unshakable conviction that he was unconditionally loved by his mother. As Grandma Olive was gradually dying, her Doctor often visited her. He said that she was a majestic lady, and that whenever he came to see her, he went away feeling better. Even in the last stages of death, Grandma Olive had the ability to comfort and calm those around her.
I will always remember the last private communion service that I had with Grandma Olive, a week before she died.. She participated very intensely in the service, although greatly weakened physically. As I spoke of Jesus’ loving death for us, she nodded her head continually and then said: “I’m ready to go. I want to be with Grandpa, my parents, and my friends.” One of her last few words were: “I am so fortunate. I have such a good family and friends”. Then she said, “I love you very much.” Grandma Olive was not afraid to die, because she believed in the truth of Easter. Grandma knew that love was stronger than death. This Mother’s Day, I want to thank God for all the mothers, like Grandma Olive, who unselfishly devote their lives to their families.
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-award-winning author of the book Battle for the Soul of Canada
-previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News
P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.
“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”
Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.
Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…
A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.
Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?
Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.
If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.
-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.
In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).
Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.
Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.
To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.
-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
Gary Smalley and John Trent, well-known authors and family counselors, said that one of the greatest gifts we can give our children is the gift of honour. Smalley/Trent say that ‘honour’ is a decision we make to place high value, worth, and importance on another person by viewing him or her as a priceless gift and granting him or her a position in our lives worthy of great respect. Thank God for my mom giving me the gift of honour both as a child and an adult. In so many ways, she showed that she valued me and really cared for me.
My third question was: “If you could do one nice thing for your mother, what would it be?” One boy said that he could stay up really late and do all the chores that she usually does for him. A girl said that she could buy her mom a car. Other children thought that they could…do the paper route for her, play the piano for her at church, make his own lunch, make her breakfast, get her a diamond ring, sweep the floor, clean up the whole kitchen for her and probably clean the house.
Ephesians 5:33 teaches that “each one must love his wife as he loves himself’ Love, especially romantic love, is one of the deepest needs of today’s mothers in a frantic, often lonely world. I believe that God sends husbands to earth precisely to meet that need in a woman’s heart.
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