paying the biggest price?

Moms. Hands down. It's the toughest job on the planet I think.

I just had to say goodbye to mine...for a long time...not easy. But harder for her.

It's my humble opinion that in this missionary endeavor, mom's pay the biggest price, and might I even dare say, in life in general?

It's a tall order, grow a human being inside of yourself. Bring it to life "on the outside," provide it what it needs to sustain life independently from you, and then eventually watch them make decisions for themselves and how they will sustain/maintain their own life *on their own* whether you approve or not, ushering them out into the world, wishing you could protect them from harm but knowing you can't....having to watch as they make mistakes, creating their own opportunities for harm, in addition to watching them endure harm from others by no fault of their own...hoping that they are strong and courageous and then having to endure the ramifications of the risk inherent in actually being strong and courageous...or so it seems...

sending your child away, no matter how old they are, to another part of the world, no matter where that is, is heart wrenching I think...that same child you once attempted to provide for and protect, now totally outside of your realm of influence...instead, you do what? you learn to pray. Maybe this is how so many women become such people of prayer...

For my mom, physical danger is not really the concern that it is for most mom's...she is more concerned about the emotional toll, the challenges of the heart she knows are waiting for me on the other side of the pond. She's right. It's not a question of whether or not they will be waiting, it is a matter of when exactly I will meet them. And they will be heavy. She knows the weight of heart heavy things, and she longs for the day when she, and those she loves will be free of them. Me too.

More than dads. More than friends. More than siblings. It's hardest on moms.

In any case, here's to mom's of missionaries and the prices they pay! Here's to their prayers of faith and hope and sometimes desperation. Here's to the day when goodbyes will no longer be necessary! Here's to my mom! I love you!