One Mother's Choice Lm

"Reality is something you rise above." -Liza Minelli There is a host of systems the world over that mankind has chosen to live under or to be governed by. Some of these systems are cultural, and others are political or religious. Some systems are so entrenched into the life and psyche of its people that there is very little opportunity to escape their gripe. Unfortunately, these are "Realities" that the populous in many societies must learn to live with or, in many cases, become a criminal or castaway in society. In the "Free World", it is easy to take for granted the mindset to which we have become accustomed. We all are subjected to the reality we are born into, but at some point, we learn and come to realize that reality is not our god, and we are not bound to remain in an unpleasant status if we choose to prepare ourselves to face the challenges and "Rise Above" the unpleasant plight into which we find ourselves. Even in hostile societies with far less freedom, men and women have found ways to "Rise Above" those seemingly inescapable realities. The "Rise Above" is often very costly endeavors and pursuits, resulting in imprisonments and too often even death. There are other realities in family life that are more personal and far less hostile. For example, My father died, leaving 11 minor children with our mother who was 35 years old. Some of our relatives, desiring to help our mother, offered to raise some of us kids. Without much thought, our mother said "No". Though her sadden reality looked dark, our mother had a personal faith in God that energized her to believe that she could "Rise Above" her challenging reality and make a good life for her kids. She chose to keep us together, and I have no doubt that we are the better for it. Father was gone, and mother made the wise right choice because she knew best. 021820PoSpCtest, She Inspires Series, Maureen McGreavy