You would likely be amazed how often I am approached in our hometown and asked, "Are you Linda Morrison's daughter?" Supposedly I look just a bit like her. I once thought this to be a nuisance, but oh, how honored I am when people ask that now. She is truly the most amazingly talented and giving person I know, and if I carry any of those gifts within me, I will count myself blessed.
We have so very many things we're going to cherish about our mom: obviously her food, her ability to sew us a dress at the spur of the moment in an hour or less, her laughter, how she flicks us off (daily I might add,) toot-liter burps, and an occasional full moon. I know for a fact that I will never wake up and make hamburger meat & tomatoes and homemade biscuits without hearing her voice singing so off-key...and so very loudly. I'll never use a wedding napkin without thinking about lunch at Mom's where we use napkins with random initials on them...where the heck did those things come from anyway? Speaking of random initials...one of my favorite memories of family Christmases is how Mom hangs the oddest assortment of ornaments on her tree just to make it look full. As I hand painted ornaments for boutique stores over the years, I would often make a mistake or two...or three...or four. Rather than trash those mistakes, Mom would hang each one on the frasier fir. We've laughed every year about "John & Sally's first home" and "Caroline's first Christmas" hanging from the family tree. Please tell me other people do this too? Nevermind...maybe I'd like to think this is unique to my quirky mom.
After receiving her diagnosis, truthfully even before, Mom has become adamant that her family have something of her to carry with us. I think her greatest regret in life is that she never had her mom write her favorite recipes on paper. I can remember each Thanksgiving morning watching my grandmother (and now my mom) peeling and dicing fresh fruit for the infamous ambrosia that I love so dearly. Since my grandmother's passing 32 years ago, Mom has cut up those oranges, grapes, and apples, all the while reliving her childhood holidays with Clara Mae and then telling us how important it is that we learn how to make these dishes so we don't live with those same regrets. As a result, Mom has made it her goal to leave both handwritten and digital copies of her own recipes for our family. What a legacy...so much greater than financial riches. Through all the texts, calls, visits, and cards, we've learned that so many of you understand and agree with us that she is indeed an incredible mom, Nunny, sister, and friend. Truly, she is her own legacy.
Sherri Morrison Youngblood
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