Even in death a mother’s love reaches out

A mother’s love for her daughter creates a tapestry of memories. Wisdom shared from an understanding heart, conversations replacing doubt with courage, and quiet secrets held close interweave over a lifetime.

But a mother’s death brings finality. No letters from her pen, no answer when advice is needed, no laughter to lighten a commonplace day.

Yet, there are moments when the bond between mother and daughter reaches beyond memories, when an enduring love touches earth.

“My mother and I were very close,” former Kennewick resident Catherine Lenox reminisces about her mom who was an ardent communicator. “When she passed quite suddenly in 2007, I missed, above all else, talking with her and reading her faithful, engaging letters.”

Awash in a void of sadness in the weeks that followed her mom’s death, Catherine felt the loss deeply. Nevertheless, there were schedules to meet, engagements to be kept.

One afternoon as she waited for an appointment, Catherine found there would be a delay. Rather than sitting idly, she decided to wander outside—an opportunity to momentarily forget her grief.

Nearby a Goodwill store beckoned, a place to “poke about” as a distraction. As she entered the front door, her steps quickened.

“’Something” led me to the picture frames,” Catherine recalls about the experience, “and in a pile of them, one edge poked out from the very back ‘calling to me.’”

What happened next has stayed indelibly on her heart.

“When I pulled it out,” Catherine says of her complete surprise, “there was a needlepoint in the frame entitled ‘From Your Mother.’”

While shoppers passed by, tears streamed down her face as Catherine read the last line of the carefully stitched words.

“Never forget I love you.”

This story was originally published May 10, 2013 at 2:20 PM with the headline "Even in death a mother’s love reaches out."