A Tribute to my Mom

It's only fitting that a blog post today should be in honor of Karen Louise Stevens, my mother for the past 39 years. Some things I love about my mom...

• She has shown me selflessness, always putting others ahead of herself.
• She models a life of gratefulness...I don't think I've ever heard her complain. Not once.
• She continues to show me what it means to be a good friend and have good friends.
• She showed me how to stay cool even in tense situations or moments of crisis.
• She continually put me in environments where I would grow spiritually--such as summer camp, a great church and missions trips.
• She taught me independence rather than codependence. I left home a few weeks after my 18th birthday and was well-prepared for life, thanks to mom and dad.
• She taught me that lifelong romance with one person is possible -- she's been married to my dad since 1959.
• And, although I don't remember it, she evidently taught me how to blow out birthday candles.