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My mom, Diane, used to come to my house to meet our kids after school and entertain and do crafts with them. My ex-wife had big problems with the fact that my mom didn't leave our home in pristine condition when she left. When my ex- challenged her on this, Diane asked her, "Do you want me spending time with the kids, or cleaning?" I couldn't have been more proud of my mom. The poem below embodies those feelings perfectly. Love you and your outlook on life, mom.  Happy Birthday. -------------------------------------------------------------- Dust If You Must Dust if you must, but wouldn't it be better, To paint a picture or write a letter, Bake a cake or plant a seed, Ponder the difference between want and need? Dust if you must, but there's not much time, With rivers to swim and mountains to climb, Music to hear and books to read, Friends to cherish and life to lead. Dust if you must, but the world's out there, With t...

I was chatting to my Mum today who was just home from the funeral of Nancy Stephens.   She described the funeral as lovely and went on to say what a huge support and mentor Nancy had been to her as a young mother in a small town far from family.   I then happened to read Jac Stephens’ beautiful post to her mother and her “Sticky Lemon Delicious Cake” on Facebook.   And Richard Cornish posted about his Mum on International Women’s Day, the beautiful words he posts each year and never fail to send a shiver down my spine.   I look at the family and the community I grew up in and see, not just an idyllic childhood of farms, beaches, horses, sailing and home-baked cakes but also the number of extraordinary women who influenced our world. From my grandmother who was widowed in the late 1940s with three small children, who ran an orchard and privately educated her children, to my mother who believed her girls could … so we did.   There was the b...