There's no way to fully repay mom

I painted my mother’s garage door last week. She had been wanting it done for a long time. She rents her house from her brother’s widow who is now living in California. As it was a small project, we decided to take care of it without bothering the landlord.
I scraped off the loose paint and discovered that the panels on the garage door weren’t real wood. I was afraid the material would disintegrate once I turned to hose on it, but it held together. I scrubbed   the rest of the door and headed to the paint store.
After waiting for the father and daughter in front of me to buy some intensely pink paint for the daughter’s room, it was finally my turn. I told the tiny girl behind the counter what I wanted but when it came time to pay, it was more difficult than I imagined. I handed her cash. She wanted my name. I answered automatically. Then she asked for my address. As I was answering, it dawned on me that she was filling out some kind of mailing list. When she asked for my e-mail, I balked. The last thing I want is more spam. I also refused to give her my phone number. So she put in a number she described as fake. She started giggling and said she was entering a number that would put the manager in touch with the insane asylum.
I wondered when paying with actual money had become so complicated. Apparently she couldn’t complete the transaction without the requested information. A couple days later I received a coupon in the mail offering me a discount on more paint.
Then it was back to Mom’s to actually apply the coating to the door. My brother, Michael, and his wife, Diane, were there. We had taped off the door and I was painting the trim when Mom came out to supervise. Michael picked up the roller and painted a couple of the panels while I did the trim. Mom told me that I should use the roller instead of the brush as Michael got so much more done so much quicker.
I told her I would be happy to use the roller if she wanted paint all over her bricks. Michael put the roller down as soon as she went back inside but not before spilling paint on the driveway. I stepped in it several times before I was finished. I still had paint on the bottom of my foot when I got back home.
That is one more project that I can cross off her list. At the beginning of the year she had made a list of all the things she wanted done before the year was out. She has wanted some of these things done for years, and we, her family, have resisted. This year, I have made it my mission to help her get at least part of her list crossed off. Hence, the garage door painting project.
I want to put a second coat on the door the next time I get down there, but for now, it is done. I have to admit, that it does look much better.
Sometimes we all need help with our to-do lists. Some jobs are simply beyond our abilities. That is where family comes in. My brothers do a great job with the everyday things. They take care of Mom’s yard, her groceries, her pills and the thousand other things that need to be done. Me, I do the extras.
We each have to put up with the perception that the other two of us do far more of the work than we, ourselves, do. No matter how much we do for her, it will never be enough. We can never repay her for simply being our mom and making each of us feel as if we are the most important person in her life. An afternoon spent painting is a small way of telling her I am glad she’s our mom. Now, what is the next project I can do for her?[[In-content Ad]]