Special Women’s Edition With Women of True Grit Author – Edie Hand – Vol. 9 – Issue #5

I enjoyed  in my younger years  Mother’s Day with my Mom and our family at my Grandmother Alice Hacker’s  farm.  She made good old southern meals and my Mom would always make a peach cobbler. It was always a gathering of other relatives there.  The men made homemade ice cream also. I can still hear the uncles making music from grandmother Alice front porch.

Once I became a mother I got how special it was to be remembered on Mother Day. My son, Linc, and his Dad, Lincoln ,  bought me yellow roses and a special card with a day at the spa to be pampered.

My son, Linc, and his Dad, Lincoln ,  bought me yellow roses and a special card with a day at the spa to be pampered. Please add after bought me yellow roses and a day at the spa. Even though Linc is an adult and lives across the country in Burbank, CA he calls me every day and sometimes twice a day for the last 20 years. It warms his mom’s heart.it is hard to let our children or child go but they have to find their purpose in life. I have learned from living afar as a mom to just seize moments and be present when it counts. He lost his Dad over 10 years ago to Cancer. I try to fill some of that void. Linc adored his Dad and he was a good father… We share our day 0ver the phone and I try to be a good listener. He is a terrific actor , a businessman and a good husband. I feel he has found a good team in his circle of trust in a challenging entertainment world.

 

I  am now in my seasoned-period of   life. I do reflect on how the strong women in my life have help to mold me to be who I am today. I learned good manners never go out of style, I saw the importance of Love and to have laughter around me.

A woman’s work is never done. I know I have gained more strength through having a strong resilience.

I actually saw great strength in never giving up on whatever the task was from my grandmothers Alice hood-Hacker , grandmother Floy Blackburn and my special aunt Linda Blackburn , aunt Clyneice Ledbetter ,aunt Lela myrick-Dawson and aunt Jackie Coleman. I was loved by them in different ways and miss them all. On Mother’s Day I remember to Thank them in my mind and heart for the memories of music, tea parties, a love of flowers, how to care for my skin and just be a girly girl but they encouraged my imagination and education. It has all served me well ….

It takes courage to walk through one’s fears and discover new tools to make better choices.

Well Mothers have many love stories … founding women of true grit is a passionate art of  encouraging women to share stories with tools of how they navigated to go from hard to beautiful situations. Helping other women to not feel alone in  learning from each other about life skills.

6. With your extensive experience in media and storytelling, how do you think we can use these platforms to elevate the voices of mothers and highlight their contributions on Mother’s Day?

I know women can be nominated as a Women of True Grit on my www.ediehand.com  if selected we will do their story.

All media platforms can be used to tell stories through my Women of  True Grit. Women need to be elevated and recognize their talents.

For example if she is trying to refresh her health give her a day or a month with a personal trainer.

A  day at the spa or a book that included a day of a movie. If she is a singer or loves music tickets to a musical or a song writing experience to use the power of words. If she is a strong woman of faith give her an experience of a Gospel concept with a friend if you cannot join your mom.

 

A calling to pay life forward is just that to give back to the underserved. A gift that keeps giving is to donate in your mom’s name to her favorite works for others.

Example maybe missions in her church, a cause like St. Jude Children’s research hospital, a gift to Ryan’s reach for Traumatic Brain Injury or someone in your community like me that helps to educate women of all ages about life skills. Grit: 101 is a workshop on life skills…. Women who need to know they are valued after sex trafficking or women and children that are need of clothes and food to survive and learn how to make better choices to get a life.

It truly takes a village and a good heart to just show compassion for our fellow persons.

We all know in our hearts what our passions are. Your family should know but if they do not just be intentional and let them know your heart to help others serve those less fortunate. To learn about what you can do similar to me visit www.ediehandfoundation.org.

I know about the path of grief to heart break with the loss since a young adult of most of my immediate family. A mother to give up a child is hard. I watched my mother give up her 3 sons at the ages of 19, 23 and 46. I loved those boys and was like a second mom to them.

The best of those Blackburn boys I can share is not to remember the sadness but today I remember what I learned from their short lives.

I was the oldest of 5 (one baby sister Kim) and I learned from David the gift of laughter and to surround myself with folks that make me smile and those that know me say I have the late comedian Phyllis Diller’s laugh. I laugh deep!

From my brother Phillip I learned to seize moments in life in my business works and those gifts of time with special friends or perhaps to just be kind to someone in need of it. Lastly my brother ,Terry, I  learned the most about courage. He suffered 7 years with brain trauma and i watched this. 7-foot handsome man go from big and strong to losing all his motor skills.

My walk of great loss has given me a deep mission of empathy for my fellow man.

“Mother”

Your mother is always with you. She’s the whisper of the leaves as you walk down the street, the aroma of certain foods you remember, the flowers you pick—the fragrance of life itself.

She’s the cool hand on your brow when you’re not feeling well, she’s your breath in the air on a cold winter’s day. She is the sound of the rain that lulls you to sleep, the colors of a rainbow, she is Christmas morning.

Your mother lives inside your laughter; she’s the place you come from, your first home. And she’s the map you follow with every step you take. She’s your first love, your first friend, even your first enemy, but nothing on earth can separate you. Not time, not space… not even death.

I like to share stories of women that have been through hard things and learned how to navigate to beautiful situations. Like the metaphor of the Pearl …it takes a spec of grit inside the oyster shell to go through irritations to become a beautiful Pearl and  in life we women go through irritations that help us to just become.

Life is not charmed for many but know Hard prepares us to do harder and you too can do hard things and turn them into better situations!

To view stories of women of true grit or nominate one visit www.ediehand.com

These stories are of extraordinary women that give us Pearls of hope remember you are a worthy Mother !