[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 54 (Thursday, April 28, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4535-S4536]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              MOTHER'S DAY

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, Washington, like most of the Nation, is 
awash in green. Lawns are lush and verdant. The new leaves on the trees 
are bright green, soft, and whole--not yet the tough, sun- and insect-
scarred veterans of late summer, but as delicate as a baby's skin. The 
dogwoods and lilacs are blooming, and the azaleas are putting on their 
magnificent show. In a few days, it will be May. May is a beautiful 
month in the Nation's capital, just as it is in the hills of West 
Virginia. It is, perhaps, the most beautiful month. It is a gentle, 
nurturing month, full of tenderness and promise.
  It is fitting that such a month be graced with a day to honor 
mothers. Sunday, May 8th, is Mother's Day. On this day, tender thoughts 
of affection and gentle acts of kindness and appreciation are showered 
upon our mothers, who have sustained us all with their gentle hands, 
warm hearts, and forgiving natures.
  To be sure, women have as many facets as a brilliantly cut diamond. 
They can be tough and demanding professionals, fierce competitors in 
any field of endeavor, stoic and enduring in the face of great 
hardship, and outstanding performers in the arts, medicine and science. 
The news as well as history is full of stories of the accomplishments 
of women. But on this one day, we celebrate the side of women that is 
most like this lovely month of May--the mothering side. It is the side 
that kissed our baby feet, that saved locks of hair from our first 
haircuts and our first baby teeth. It is the side whose tender touch 
soothed our hurts, whose unwavering belief in our talents sustained us 
through sports failures, painful piano recitals, and countless hours 
of practices and tantrums. It is the side that sang to us, baked us 
cookies, and patiently helped build our science project volcanoes out 
of soda bottles and plaster of Paris. It is the side that glowed as we 
received our diplomas, went out on our first dates, accepted our first 
jobs; the side that held us as we lost jobs, lost loved ones, lost 
faith in our dreams. Our mothers never lose faith. In business or at 
work, women might be efficient, even ruthless, judges, quickly 
assessing and sorting through problems, but at home, as mothers, we 
depend on their faith and support to find solutions for our problems.

  Next weekend, mothers will be feted with cards, flowers, and Sunday 
brunches. They will begin to get some of the backlog of hugs that are 
their due, a down payment on the debt of gratitude we owe them for 
taking on such a monumental task. The only instruction that women 
receive on how to be a good mother comes from their own mother. It is a 
remarkable achievement that so many women learn this complex job so 
effortlessly, and manage to perform it so well. Women from around the 
globe, women who will never break a world record, invent a new 
technology, discover a new fact, will share with those record breakers 
in the phenomenally important job of motherhood. Society utterly 
depends on how well mothers and fathers manage the task of parenting. 
It is a heavy responsibility to lay upon such rank amateurs.
  I can well recall the early days of my own marriage. I have been 
blessed to have been married to the same kind and forgiving woman for 
almost 68 years. We are now proud great grandparents. But nearly seven 
decades ago, we were the rankest of amateurs at marriage and 
parenthood. Erma has always been my touchstone. Her faith in me has 
never wavered, and she took to mothering me as effortlessly as she took 
to mothering our daughters. In Erma Ora James Byrd runs the blood of a 
great line of mothers--fierce in their devotion to their families, 
vigilant in their care, loving in their manner.

  That same fierceness, vigilance, and devotion can be seen in women 
who bring their mothering skills to the office as well. I am so often 
impressed at the energy and ability of working mothers. Their ability 
to focus on their two big jobs--work and family--takes real dedication, 
precise time management, and grueling endurance. Single mothers require 
those qualities in even greater measure. They often do not have someone 
who can help with the homework, share in the driving to school and 
practices, take turns staying home with sick children, put the children 
to bed or read them stories, or do any of the so-called ``father's 
jobs'' of taking out the trash, mowing the lawn, fixing the car, or 
even drying the dishes. It takes superhuman strength to keep up that 
level of effort at home while still earning a living. I do not think 
that, as a society, we have made it easy for mothers, and especially 
for single mothers, to do their twin jobs. We need to find better ways 
to help women balance work and motherhood. We need their skills and 
talents in the workforce, but we also need their skills and talent at 
home, building our Nation's future.
  I know of some women, in West Virginia and throughout the country, 
who have found themselves in the single mother category after the 
tragic loss of their husbands in battles in Afghanistan and Iraq. They 
have had to deal with their own and their children's grief, the loss of 
their husband's income, and making a new home for

[[Page S4536]]

themselves outside of the military, plus the sudden loss of their 
partner in childrearing. They and their children should not be 
forgotten after the furled flag is handed to them at a military 
funeral. We deservedly call their husbands heroes for the sacrifice 
they made for our Nation, but their families are left to be heroes each 
and every lonely day thereafter. They need and merit the support and 
comfort from all of us, on Mother's Day and every day.

  Children are sometimes, and rightly, referred to as our greatest 
national treasure. They are our future, the great hope for the 
continued success and enduring values of our Nation. But if that 
statement is true, then it is also true that good mothers are our 
Nation's greatest national resource. Without mothers dedicated every 
day to this monumental task, our future would be bleak indeed. Though 
the Senate will not be in session next week, I am proud to call 
attention to the coming of Mother's Day. I hope that others will join 
me in applauding the noble calling of motherhood, and in recognizing 
the hard work and love that mothers demonstrate day after day.
  I would like to close with a poem by Strickland Gillilan, called 
``The Reading Mother,'' as it speaks to the simple, lasting gifts that 
mothers give their children.

                           The Reading Mother

     I had a Mother who read to me
     Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
     Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
     ``Blackbirds'' stowed in the hold beneath.

     I had a Mother who read me lays
     Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
     Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
     Which every boy has a right to know.

     I had a Mother who read me tales
     Of Gelert the hound from the hills of Wales,
     True to his trust till his tragic death,
     Faithfulness blent with his final breath.

     I had a Mother who read me the things
     That wholesome life to the boy heart brings--
     Stories that stir with an upward touch,
     Oh, that each mother of boys were such!

     You may have tangible wealth untold;
     Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
     Richer than I you can never be--
     I had a Mother who read to me.

     

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