From The Past: February 10, 2005

Kevin and I have been married well over a decade. In this time, I cannot tell you how many “I Care” packages my mother has made for us.

Many years ago, when we were living in an apartment, we had no extra money. Going to a restaurant was an extravagance we could not afford. We drank lots of Kool-Aid. RC Cola was our big indulgence. There were times when we would get down to almost nothing in our cabinets and refrigerator. I don’t know how mom knew, but she always did.

She and dad would come over sometimes bearing five or six grocery bags full to spilling! There was lots of meat, and canned vegetables but, there were also brownies, pudding, and cake mixes! She knew that we couldn’t afford to splurge on many sweets, so she made sure that she included those in the I Care packages too. I don’t know what we would have done sometimes had she not thought of us.

Only last night Kevin made fried chicken. We had seven legs left over and I called to ask her if she wanted to have them for her and dad’s dinner. She said, “You cooked fried chicken on a weekday?!” She said this because cooking fried chicken is normally saved for a weekend meal around here. It takes hours and lots of cleaning up afterwards; something that most people don’t want to commit to during the busy workweek.

I explained to her that the chicken was literally the last thing in our freezer. She said that they would pick it up and that was the end of our conversation.

About an hour or so later, dad arrived at the door. He was there to pick up those seven chicken legs, but he had also brought two I Care packages with him. In them were two boxes of macaroni & cheese, two packages of cubed steaks, pork chops, and a $13 pork roast! I was astounded.

It’s not that Kevin and I couldn’t afford groceries just recently; we just hadn’t been out to shop yet. But that didn’t matter to mom. That wasn’t her point. Her point was to let us know that she cares with her I Care packages. Well, I hear you loud and clear mom and I appreciate it. I only hope that I remember to be as thoughtful when needs arise.