A lady, who is sweet, gentle, kind...yet, strong and resilient all at the same time. To me, this is the definition of a Steel Magnolia. A Steel Magnolia's beauty comes from within, which serves to enhance her physical appearance. This combination in a woman makes her one of God's most loveliest and endearing creatures on earth.

I don't think there has been just one particular woman who has influenced me as being the epitomony of a "Steel Magnolia", but rather, it has been a culmination of women throughout the ages whom I have admired.

But if I had to pick just one women who has influenced me the most, I would have to say it's my mother. For she is the most enduring and resilient woman I've ever known. She has weathered many hardships during her life and still found the will to go on. She never gave up!

She always put her family before herself. As a child, I can remember her getting up before dawn and building a fire in the old wood cookstove to make a big breakfast for us before we went off to school. And when family members would gather for special occasions she made sure that everyone had been fed before she would sit down to eat. It was simply her nature to put everyone's interest above her own.

She taught my brothers and me the values of honesty, integrity, and the importance of our heritage. She may have been somewhat lacking in sophisticated richness as she was more committed to providing the basic necessities of life by working the small farm where she grew up and where she raised us children. Next to her family, the land and the homeplace where she grew up were her foremost concerns. To that end, she puts me in mind of the famous character Scarlett O'Hara. I would not stereotype my mother as the typical Southern Belle, but a "Steel Magnolia" she most assuredly was and still is at the golden age of eighty-seven.

My mother passed away since I made this page back in 2002 and through it all she remained a "Steel Magnolia." I love you Mama and miss you more than you will ever know.

Background Midi: "I Miss You on a Day Like This"

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