As I sit here on a quiet, 'Mother's Day' Sunday afternoon, listening to Michala Petri playing a flute concerto, I reflect on the four astounding women in my life who have taught me so much about what it means to be a woman. I'm often in awe at how fortunate I've been to have these four beautiful women as my mentors.

My Stepmother, Joyce Empey Smith, has been in my life for 25 years. She has been there through the birth of my three sons, cuddling each of them when they were tiny and always being there for them throughout the years whenever there was a family get-together.

She has steadfastly and unflinchingly loved my Dad ever since they met at a singles venue a couple of years after he and my Mother had divorced.
She has been his companion and best friend and has shown me what a life of devotion and friendship with someone is all about.

She is kind, gentle, artistic and always there at every family get-together making sure everything runs along smoothly and everyone is taken care of.
She and my Dad live just a few streets away from my place and I always know she is there for me if I need advice or an ear or someone to share a cup of tea with.
On Monday and Thursday evenings we take dance classes together and share in many laughs as we all do the mambo, charleston and other jazz and latin dance steps. I've never stopped feeling extremely grateful that she entered our lives over 24 years ago and I look forward to spending many more years with her in my life.

My Aunt Helen, my Dad's only sibling, lives 50 minutes away in Kingston, Ontario.
She has given birth to 7 of her own children and is now a great-grandmother, however she never ceases to remember her extended family and to be concerned for each and every person she knows.
She is one of the most soft-spoken and gentle people I've ever known and loves gardening and family get-togethers and reminiscing and telling and listening to stories and hearing all of the news on each family member.

When my oldest son was young, she and my Uncle Aurel would have him to their beautiful home on the St. Lawrence River for many days at a time. David loved going there as his personality is very similar to the two of them, gentle, softspoken, sensitive and artistic. David still speaks of his visits there to this day.

When I was a teenager I spent many summers at my Aunt and Uncle's house and although there were many children to take care of, my Aunt always pulled it all off with such finesse and ease that I don't ever remember the house being noisy or a harsh word ever being spoken.
Things just flowed gracefully along as they followed in the timbre my Aunt set for the household.

She taught me to appreciate the finer things in life; art, antiques, gardens, stories, special moments shared with family and through her reminiscences I saw what my Dad was like when he was a little guy following her around incessantly. She never complained or lacked patience with him and to this day they are the best of friends.



My Aunt Claudette, my Mother's only sister, lives in a small French-Canadian town in northern Ontario called Sturgeon Falls.
It is the town where I was conceived and spent the first few weeks of my life. Sturgeon Falls always feels like home to me whenever I go there and when I step across the threshold of my Aunt's front door, I relax and know that I'm 'home' once more. She lives in the house my Great Grandfather built and that my Mom spent part of her childhood days living in.

My Aunt Claudette called me two days ago in the wee hours of the morning to tell me my dear Uncle Bear had passed away during the night. They had been married for over 55 years and she had met him when she was 15 years old. The two of them were as close as two people could be.
They spent their summers on Sandy Island at their summer cottage, on the beach, and I have many fond memories of spending weeks there with them, fishing, relaxing while watching loons, consuming far too many delicious home-cooked meals made on the old cookstove and visiting with my cousins.

My Aunt was the fist one to care for me when I was an infant as my Mother was unable to leave the hospital for a number of days after giving birth and my Dad was working. She missed me so much when my Mother was able to leave the hospital and took me home, that she decided she had to have another baby of her own, and hence my cousin John was born.

Aunt Claudette has a heart of gold, the smile of an angel and open arms to receive all of those who are lucky enough to know her.

Tomorrow, as I make the trek with my family back to that small northern Ontario town to attend my Uncle's memorial service, I will see her once more. She always gives the warmest and biggest hugs and you just know, after receiving one of her hugs, that you are loved beyond measure.

It will be a sad visit, and the loss of my Uncle will leave a vast emptiness in her life. She has never lived as an adult without him.

This summer my Mother and I will go and stay with her for a week on the island and, as we do on all of our visits, will share in conversations about life and family while basking on the beach during lazy summer afternoons.
This is my French-Canadian family, and although their conversation is partly spoken in French and partly in English, I never fail to understand what is being said, the emotions all coming through so passionately.

Then there is my Mother, Yvette.

My Mother was blessed with a heart so big and an enthusiasm so bubbly that one cannot help but endear themselves to her after knowing her only a short while.
Her laugh can be heard far across a room and she is the first to be there to help a friend or family member in need.
She will give of anything she has, just so another does not have to suffer.

She loves children, all children, as though they were her own, for to her, they are. She plays cards and games with them endlessly and has the patience of Job. Her Grandchildren have been so blessed to have her as their Grandmother. She has spoiled each and every one of them through the years and always makes sure they each have what they most want, be it a favourite food or a special toy or a strong ear and advice.

She loves all people and greets everyone with a smile and friendly hello.
Everyone seems to know her and count her amongst their friends.

She is retired now, however is more active than ever. She spends winters in town and spring to fall at her summer place on Pleasant Bay.
She's rarely home as she belongs to dart and card leagues and senior's groups and attends garden parties and dinners so much, that it's often hard to track her down.
She is the epitiome of 'grasping all you can out of life, while you can, and making each day count'.

Tomorow I will take her on the 6 hour drive north to the place of her childhood where she and her sister will find solace in eachother's arms as we begin to say goodbye to my Uncle.
The drive will take us through one of the most beautiful parks in Ontario, Algonquin, and even in her sorrow she will exclaim at the beauty of the lakes and the forests and the small animals we may see along the way.
And now, I better go and get ready as I'm taking her out for dinner today for Mother's Day!

The very best of days to all Mother's who might be reading this and to all of your Mom's and Mother figures. We are truly fortunate to have been given such unique and beautiful creatures known as 'Mothers'.

Here is a link to something my Mother sent me yesterday. It brought a tear to my eye and I encourage you all to read it as we honour our Mother's on this special day, 'A Newborn's Conversation With God'.

Thank you to the four most influential women in my life. I love and cherish each of you and feel that I am amongst the most fortunate of people in the entire world to have been so blessed in having each of you throughout most of my life to help show me the way.

~Jo