I am thinking about my mother a lot recently.  She meant so much to me in so many ways. Yes, Mother’s Day and all — the Hallmark Card-invented day to sell instant greeting cards.  More than that, much more, I think about my mom often and want to honor her as much as I can.

My mother, Mary Ellen Chumley, was a very smart, talented artist.  She knew art and aesthetics backwards and forwards.  The first curator of the Indiana University Museum of Art, she brought sophistication to Indiana and the midwest, early on.

My mom was also someone who struggled with weight problems.  Always overweight, always dieting, she just loved her desserts and candies, and never could give them up.

To her, food was the primary way of feeling loved, and giving love.  She needed a lot of love, and so she ate a lot.  She shared her love in the kitchen, making really great cookies, chocolate pudding, pies, jellies, cakes and very fattening, very delicious dinners.

I learned so much from her, about art, about life.  I loved her very much, and learned about love from her because she loved me so much.  I also learned from her mistakes: to take better care of myself and find love in other ways, other than through overeating, and eating very fattening foods.  I learned to not let myself get sick in order to lose weight, as she did.

I thank God for my Mom, the life she gave me, and her sacrifices and teachings.

Please tell me about your mom, and what you learned from her by posting your story below.  I read everything everyone writes, and I love your being here.

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Read my story, and more about my mom, by clicking here.  Then tell me (and us) YOUR story.