Mother’s Day 2019

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Fred and I have been considering what to tell you about our mothers on this, their special day.  We’ve told you quite a bit about them both, and so I will just give you tidbits of what we’ve said before.

Above all else, I must make this statement first – and this comes from both Fred and myself: We both loved our mothers-in-law.  We were each treated as if we were another son (Fred by my parents) or another daughter (me by Fred’s parents), rather than son-in-law or daughter-in-law.  We were loved.

Fred’s mother – Kitty Wills…

            She was funny, cute, elegant, classy, down-to-earth, loved to laugh….

Her father was a Scottish Presbyterian minister… I remember her saying that she loved to hear the bagpipes play – it really got her blood up to a good boil!

She was devoted to her husband and their four children.  Being a U.S. Air Force wife, she moved and traveled frequently.  She had a flair for decorating, and her home was always elegant yet comfortable…They lived all over the world – many places in the United States as well as Italy, Japan, and Hawaii.

She was a great cook. She taught me to make turkey stuffing the “New England” way – with bread rather than cornbread.  She taught me to make German Springerle Christmas cookies – the best I’ve ever eaten!  

She loved to have fun, and was a bit of a cut-up. I will always remember her with me on the beach in northern California, dancing barefoot through the wet sand and kelp.

When Fred and his siblings said something “bad,” his mother, instead of washing his mouth out with soap – would put mustard on their tongues!!  Consequently, none of the Wills siblings like to eat condiments!  Understandable, right?

Fred’s Mother had one little quirk that I enjoyed. After she finished stirring a pan on the stove, or a pot of tea, she would hit the spoon on the edge of the bowl/pot/pitcher in the following pattern:

tap, tap, ta-tap, tap…..tap, tap.

For those of you old enough to remember, it is the sequence for “shave and a hair-cut…two bits.”  I always thought that was cute.

Judy’s mother – Agnes Lites

Mother’s meals consisted often of pot roast – and she could make a roast that would just melt in your mouth!  It would fall off the bone it was so tender.  Dad used to tease her with “this meat is no good – it just falls off the bone!”

I also remember that, if there was any roast left over, mother would grind it up, add mayonnaise and either relish or pickles and a hard boiled egg, and it became a meat salad. Spread it on bread, and you have a lovely sandwich!  She didn’t waste anything!

When my Dad retired and money was tight, Mother bought a Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio, trained for the job, and set to work. She had a really good, strong work ethic.

Although I suspect she would have loved to be a stay-at-home mom, she worked as an accountant at Kirtland AFB, to make money for “extra” things in our life.  She bought a new piano for our house. But one of the best things about her working there, was that she would find young military personnel – usually men – who were away from home and homesick, and bring them to church with us on a Sunday, then home to Sunday dinner. She kept in contact with many of them throughout her time there. One time she broke her ankle and couldn’t climb the steps to her office upstairs. The officials were so insistent that she not “retire” that they placed a desk and lamp under the stairway just for her. They really liked her work.

Credit Google Search and Kirtland AFB website

One of the most unique things is that she met, fell in love with, and married a man who was 20 years older than herself. And yet, the marriage was one that I hoped to emulate with my marriage.  She created a loving and secure home for her husband and her children. She was heart-broken when her husband died.

The little snippet of information below is a real insight into her life.  I think it was a testimony to the way she lived her life, and the way she saw life.  It certainly makes one take notice about the wisdom of the words.  I found this in her Bible following her death.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY 2019

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years

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