04/21/10 | "Mothers Day"

From time to time you are forced to look at various aspects of your life along with the people in it. As we approach Mother’s Day, I am reminded of my own mother’s death a little more than a year ago. It is hard to believe that she is gone because she was such a looming personality in my life. Where would we be without our parents? It is an interesting thought.Today I ran across an article in the New York Times with the title, “Actors Son Gets Five Years on Drug Charges.” The actors son is Cameron Douglas, son of Michael Douglas and his ex-wife Diandra Douglas who has been sentenced to five years in prison for distributing large quantities of Methanphetamines, Cocaine and Heroine. He had been an unemployed addict with a five time a day Heroine habit.There are many to take the blame for this. The article said that his life was one of loneliness in which his parents were often absent or feuding. He turned to drugs at age 13. Some of us could think that he had taken a great life of money and celebrity and blown it. At age 31, you can’t really blame your parents for your problems. At some point you have to take responsibility for them yourself.What I did find interesting was Michael Douglas who said that he cherished his weekly visits with his son at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in lower Manhattan. Maybe Michael Douglas should have had more visits with his son a lot earlier. Who knows?All I know is that I am glad that I was able to see my mother every day. Time may not have always been quality time but without it, I really wonder what would have happened to me. So I just want to raise my glass to all those mothers who tuck their kids in at night, read them stories, teach Sunday school, get everyone up and moving for church and are constantly a taxi service driving their children from ball games to music lessons to school plays. Here’s to you mom. Thanks for everything.