When the world shows you chaos and uncertainty, lend a flashlight to find the way.
// Lessons on Civility
So much of life in general is filled with chaos and confusion. My mother’s was not much different. I witnessed struggles from being a woman in the workplace while juggling the “expectations” of being a mother. I watched as she faced professional uncertainty as public policy turned on education. But if there is one thing that she was really good at it was making sure to step in and take part. She didn’t always have the answer but always was one of the first to stand up and make sure the discussion got started. She understood that through civic involvement and exercising civic responsibility that we could achieve and overcome any obstacle. She showed us that our biggest role in this country is that of the involved activist. Speaking out for those without a voice and ensuring that even the smallest issue had a flashlight in which to shine its message to those that needed to hear it.

When guests are on their way, don’t just make it a party…make it a splash
// Lessons on Entertaining
My grandma was a consummate entertainer and this skill most definitely was taken to a new level by my mother. From following standard entertaining etiquette to that added flair that ensured that every person that should be in attendance was there and fully attended to. We had countless parties over the years, from the annual family get-together, to neighborhood gatherings and significant milestone events such as graduation and birthdays.

She taught us that to make a party grand didn’t require a significant budget, nor did it need the fanciest food. The key to a magnificent event was a gracious host and an ability to bring a variety of people together in friendship.

When life gives you lemons, through them out and reach for the raspberry ice.
// Lessons in Entrepreneurship and Innovation
We all remember those childhood memories where we grabbed the jug of lemonade from the fridge and took to the streets peddling the refreshment for 25¢ a glass. Well with health in mind and a desire to reduce sugars in the kids, mom ensured that a cool refreshing sugar-free option called “raspberry ice” was ever present and on hand. So with convention tossed to the lake breeze we would take to the street with a new refreshing beverage that seemed to always disappear without haste.

Now granted in this instance the challenge was simple, but there were many times growing up where entrepreneurship and innovation was always encouraged and celebrated. Whether it was short stints with woodworking endeavors to real world business operations as an adult. I remember the lessons my mother taught me in never giving up, finding the new path to venture down and above all else; encouragement for the extraordinary.

When no one has a plan for you, make a plan no one thought of and run!
// Lessons in Making a Difference
The late 80′s and early 90′s in Minnesota saw some of the toughest and most painful decisions in the states history when it comes to education. As with many teachers during those times, my mother found herself at the mercy of budget cuts and the low end of the seniority pool. Facing a significant employment cut and having a family of 5 to care for she reached out in new and inventive ways to make ends meet. The amazing thing of this whole process is what transpired proved to make a huge difference in the lives of many disadvantaged youth. The “Mentor Mom” program (an initiavtive that matched teenage moms with established mothers to serve as role models) and her work with homebound tutoring provided a view to a world I had never known until that point.

Through this exposure I learned one of my most valuable lessons. We all have value, we all have worth in society, someone just needs to give us the key to unlock the future. She exuded such passion in many that the world had seemingly left behind. Through new parents that would have structure and guidance and kids graduating high school when everyone else said they couldn’t to the student that, eventhough no family member was present at the sporting event, they could count on a teacher that was so much of a mother as well cheering them on.

My mother’s legacy to students and youth will far outweigh much of her life’s accomplishments and to this day no matter where I am at, people still come up and recognize me as one of Mrs. Mohs’ boys and share how absolutely amazing she was and the impact she had on their life.

When you find yourself at a Plateau, ask yourself “What’s next?”.
// Lessons in Discovering You Ultimate Calling
This lesson has been hammered home a bit lately and you might recall the topic surfacing in a post just from last week, but it bears repeating. I watched both my parents reach for the stars on many occasions. Mom in particular never settled for the easy and mundane. She was a mover and always reached to the next step. If there was a problem, she was right there with a solution or her gang of girlfriends to swoop in and save the day.

Much in the same way that she pushed me to always reach higher and further she undoubtedly provides the same push in her own life. To this day, even though her professional career as a teacher is behind her she refuses to plateau and slow down. She has embarked on a new adventure as a senior living community manager and dives at an even greater pace into non-profit involvement within the community.

She demonstrates daily that the journey through life is never finished and that growing in personal experience and the way we interact with the world around us is by far the most important challenge one can embark on in life.

Golden Rule:  Many things in life don’t come with rules and regulations. They come with expectations.
Rules and curfews were a far cry in our house growing up. We didn’t have set chores we were required to do and we didn’t have a specific time we had to be home at night. Yet we had something more important hovering over our conscience…expectation. There was an expectation that we would help out around the house where needed. It was expected that if we were out late some night that we were abiding the law and behaving ourselves, and most importantly we were to let dad know when we got home.

Life is full of challenges and it is not necessarily how we are restricted that brings about peace and harmony. But it is more about what the expectation is for our daily life. Care for one another, make good choices and seize every moment.

My mother and I are very similar in many ways. Two seemingly polar opposites of the spectrum, but at the core identical in more ways that one can count. Steadfast, determined, and confident, we never back down and we most certainly don’t shy from the challenge.  These are the lessons I learned from my mother growing up, lessons that, for many, provided a foundation for a life filled with service and a commitment to leave the world better than we found it.

Sure we can trump out, run for president and solve world hunger. But let’s admit it, that job is left to one person out of 300 million in a draw of fate and insanity every 4 years. I like to think that the friendly hello as your going through the fast food drive through and a gracious thank you have a far greater impact when practiced regularly. Its volunteering to apply your skills and expertise to a local non-profit so they can grow and flurish. Its taking the time to sit down with you child when they’ve been bad and talking with them about the consequences and the rewards for being good.

We all do things everyday that positively influence our world, both big and small.  So here’s my question to you the fresh readers of this blog. How do you influence your world?

Drop your answers below in the comments and check back to see all the ways others are influencing their own worlds.

Have Fun!

Christopher