Thank You, Mom, On Mother’s Day

Dear Dr. LeCrone:

Several years ago our local newspaper carried an article that you wrote for mothers on Mother’s Day. If I remember correctly, it was a list of “Thank you, Mom” messages. Would you please reprint this column?

— A reader in Florida

Dear Reader:

Here is the column you are referring to.

Dear Mom, thank you for the times you told me no when many of the other parents were saying yes or saying nothing at all. From you, I learned about healthy boundaries and limits.

Dear Mom, thank you for the times you first pointed out my accomplishments before you reviewed my shortcomings. This thoughtfulness helped keep my self-esteem intact.

Dear Mom, thank you for helping me find the right answer or assisting me in doing a task rather than taking the easy way out by giving me the solution or doing the job yourself.

Dear Mom, thank you for requiring me to be responsible for the consequences of my choices and decisions, thereby teaching me that I am accountable for my behavior.

Dear Mom, thank you for showing me that to have a friend you have to be a friend. This advice helped me develop lasting relationships.

Dear Mom, thank you for making me eat my carrots before I could have my dessert. Now work before play comes more easily.

Dear Mom, thank you for teaching me that I can’t please everyone all the time, and, further, that there are some people that I can never please. From this I learned about realistic expectations and avoided false assumptions about people.

Dear Mom, thank you for teaching me that after I was married I was to put my spouse before my family members, friends, work and hobbies. This priority has been one of the greatest lessons that you taught me about keeping a healthy marriage.

Dear Mom, thank you for helping me develop a strong spiritual basis for living, which has helped me deal with stress, the need for control and dealing with a crisis.

Most of all, Mom, thank you for teaching me about love, empathy, compassion and helping other people.

The lessons that you have taught me will be passed on to my children and grandchildren, and your legacy is therefore immortal.