950 Characters for a 95-Year-Old Matriarch

My mom, a matriarch of an ever-expanding family numbering over 130 already, and a widow since 1998, turns 95 tomorrow. Just because I can quickly find an answer, I checked to see what day of the week she was born. February 20, 1931 was also a Friday. I thought a list of 95 memories or gratitudes sounded a bit daunting, and that 95 words wasn’t enough to capture the essence of Trude, as we lovingly have called her over our adult decades. So, I landed on 950 characters—letters to form words, punctuation to form flow.

Here it is:

950 Characters for a 95-Year-Old Matriarch  

Daughter, sister, hard worker, student. Childhood of cherished memories and hurtful secrets. Learned to feed others, care for home, played kitten ball, earned a high school diploma.

Wife at 19, mother at 20, brood of 13 by age 39. Grandkids and great-grandkids galore. So many lives nurtured, touched, inspired by this tireless mother, wise and humble gardener, chicken farmer, egg gatherer, seasonal signs observer, bird watcher. 

Bread baker, laundry queen, house cleaner, referee, saver, recycler, early to bed, early to rise. Carried burdens. Also carried joy and gave it away. Sold eggs and sent fresh produce home with visitors. 

Daily walker, journaler, reader. Devout Catholic. Never far from her last rosary reciting. Square dancer, jokester, and true partner with her husband of 48 years. “Gosh all fish hooks!” her version of swearing. “If you can’t say something good, don’t say anything at all.” her guiding philosophy and parental admonishment. 

Now immobile, out of our reach, fed by others, but still nourishing her brood. Silently reminding us of life as the gift it is. 

Lisa Valentine     For Mom 2/26

Gertude Shindelar Holthaus        Born on 2/20/1931

And here are some pictures, most of them captured by my niece Katie, in May 2017, just days before she moved into the nursing home. Many of the words above are reflected in the images below. Happy Birthday Mom! I love you.