Parents

"Honor thy father and thy mother, that it may be well for thee and thou mayest live long on the earth." I memorized this, the fourth commandment according to Martin Luther, when I was in grade school. We made cute art projects for Mother's Day and Father's Day in order to show our honor.

"Paradise is at the feet of the mother." This was a saying of Muhammad. I heard it many years ago, and I still have a hard time getting my mind around it. Picture a young child, though, holding on to his mother's skirt or cuddling safe in her mother's arms. That is paradise.

We grow up and often forget about the warm fuzzy feelings we had for our parents. We become involved in raising our own children. Our parents are old. We're busy. We send cards and flowers for Mother's Day and Father's Day.

It is so very easy to lose sight of what is most important.