7) HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Today was Mother’s Day. I was greeted by my little girl bringing me a tray with buttered toasted raisin loaf and a cup of coffee in bed... All made by herself but supervised by Loretta. I received a lovely present which her father had ordered for me at Mya’s school before he returned to Singapore. Mya brought it home with the help of my sister, who also arranged the wrapping and hiding of the present.

Mya had made a card for me and her "grand mamma" - that's half English, half Greek. The funniest thing was that after school on Friday when the secret mission took place, I asked her if she had made me a card at school. She replied, “Shhh Mum, it’s a secret! And don’t look in the bathroom cupboard.” I fell over laughing thinking that she had given the game away, but in fact the clever little squirt had said that as a decoy! Loretta told me it wasn’t ever in the bathroom cupboard.

We later ate delicious bacon and eggs, and even mum indulged. For lunch, we had a great spread of foods that we hadn’t tasted in a long time. Later in the afternoon we headed off to one of mum’s favourite places for Mother’s Day. We drove to the Yarra River at Warburton, where we used to go as a family with our own Yaya. It was very special.

On the way there and back, I did the obligatory stops at all the craft/quilt shops It was great fun. Everyone got home tired but happy. Mum, Noor and Mya were in bed by 8pm. Mum and I had plenty of time to chat on the long journey, as Mya had fallen asleep in the car.

The views along the drive were stunning and lots of childhood memories arose, because we used to visit Warburton regularly. Our family had bought a property many years ago, after mum had a week of convalescence in a motel below the sanatorium when she had her one and only illness I can ever remember – pleurisy. The air is always fresh and crisp and our block looked straight across to Mount Donna Buang. The country atmosphere hasn’t changed over the years, and the 21st Century has certainly not caught up with Warburton. It’s still a great country township among the mountains.
As I write this, mum may well be dreaming of the lovely rippling clear waters of the Yarra River, the brisk fresh air, the green-blue hues of the eucalyptus trees surrounding her and adorning the stunning Mountain backdrops. She may be sleeping and reliving the memories of her mother, her husband, herself, her daughters, her and granddaughter on the same banks of the river over the many years......on this very special and last Mother’s Day we will have with her.