A Mother's Fury

[peterlim23]

I talked a little bit about my mother in the previous entry. She is an incredible woman. All her life she worked and sacrificed comfort for the betterment of my life. She has an incredibly sweet and gentle spirit and presence about her. One of the ways in which she demonstrates her love for me is by cooking me meals, I mean enormous meals. I'll be honest, my mother is doting.

I still remember being beat up by two older boys at the swimming pool of our apartment building when I was a young boy. I came home crying and my mom asked what happened. When I told her what took place a transformation took place in her that I've never ever witnessed before. This gentle woman turned into a fierce warrior, a woman on a mission to protect her son. She took me by the hand and we went back to the pool. She asked me to point out the two older boys. Immediately she confronted the boys (mind you in broken English) and then confronted the parents of the boys. During this entire encounter I was speechless because I never witnessed my mother in this way before. However, because her son was in trouble, this gentle and compassionate woman transformed into a vigilant protector and nothing was going to stand in her way.

I think that this is the way in which I am to shepherd my flock "trying to balance nurturing and compassionate provision with vigilant and courageous protection." Too often I think that being compassionate and being a protector are at odds with each other. The truth is, both must be embraced simultaneously by the leader. I think my mother modeled this perfectly to me.