There are no coincidences

Sherri T.

These are the wise words of my dear friend Betsy. She happened to say them at a very meaningful time in my life. 

 I embarked upon this Words of Our Mothers (WOOM) journey in memory of my late mother who left this world too soon. She still had so much more to do and so much more to teach us. 

 I wanted to capture her wisdom to ensure that it is passed on to the next generation of children who never had the opportunity to spend much time with her – or any time at all. 

I wanted to ensure that her words and wisdom would never be forgotten. To document her exemplary and inspiring strength, which she was always able to muster in challenging times. 

This project was a long-brewing initiative. Growing up, there was a text perched on our bookshelf called Words of Our Fathers. It captured the values and wise sayings of ancient philosophers and scholars. 

I always wondered where our mothers figured in this word legacy. They, too, had a lot to say (much of it not welcome at the time).

Fast forward 30 years and I was finally ready to launch this effort. Words of Our Fathers had counselled that it’s never too late.

It was the start of the New Year, an appropriate time for new beginnings. To keep myself busy the night before the launch, I decided to clean some closets – another long-brewing project.

Lo and behold, I uncovered a long-lost treasure! Actually, the treasure wasn’t really lost because I never knew it existed. It was a small journal my mother had kept with various questions to be answered.

One notable question was: “What have you enjoyed doing in your life?” Her reply: “I have enjoyed collecting poetry and various sayings.”

WHAT?!  I had NO IDEA that she collected sayings, which is basically the essence of WOOM. There they were, her very own words in her very own handwriting.

The following morning, I told Betsy the story. Her response: “There are no coincidences.” Thanks to Betsy’s wise words, this labor of love has assumed a whole new meaning. It was meant to be.