Carol Packard
Memories of my mother, Temi BrinerMom loved to have a good time. She was a very social person, always with lots of friends, always arranging social events. But she told me over and over again, family comes first. She demonstrated this over and over during her life.Dad traveled from New York to Florida as a traveling salesmen when my brother, Jeff, and I were pre-schoolers. As her story goes, he came home one time and I didnâ??t know who he was. So she packed us up, 4 to the front seat of the car, and traveled with my Dad several times for weeks at a time. She cooked out of a hotel room, bottles and diapers and all. That was my mother.On and off Mom took in sewing. Dresses, drapes, bedspreadsâ?¦.she did it all. Good thing, because clothes never did fit me, and she was forever refitting my clothes for me. For one of my early apartments, when I had no money, she bought material remnants and made me the most beautiful curtains and couch cover. That was my mother. Incredibly creative and resourceful.I read really early as a child. When I watched my mom reading to my grandchildren, I understood why. Although my grandmother was illiterate, my mother instinctively knew how to teach. She was a great teacher. She would not just read the stories but actively engaged her grandchildren in the process. When my own children were very young, they never got bored when she was around. She would sing and play with them, keeping them entertained. And she so delighted in seeing her great grandchildren, Miriam and Freddie. Her eyes would just light up when they came to see her.Mom and I did not always see eye to eye. We are very different people. But I got my grit from her. And my love of family. Nothing is more important. Our strong and loving relationship endured several ups and downs over the years, always to rebound as mother and daughter. That was my mother. I will so miss her!!!