The best Mother’s Day gift ever

On Mother’s Day 2002 I was living in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, but visiting a friend in Macon, Georgia, that weekend.

My son, Nate, still in the Army and in Germany, was already engaged to his now wife, Sarah. I planned to stop by that Sunday afternoon to visit Sarah, who also lived in Macon, a little while before making the four-hour drive back to Tuscaloosa.

Although it had been only a few days since I talked to Nate, I was fairly certain he would call again that day because it was Mother’s Day. He had even said as much, so I expected it to happen.

When I woke up that morning, it was already 2 p.m. where he was. I wondered what he was doing and what time he was going to call.

I had told him I would be in Macon for the weekend visiting friends, and he could reach me on my cell phone. I also told him I planned to see Sarah before I returned to Tuscaloosa Sunday afternoon.

Even while I was vacuuming my friend’s house, helping her prepare for a brunch with her mother and grown children, I kept my phone within earshot. When I jumped in the shower, I turned up the phone to maximum volume and placed it on the vanity, just in case.

Every so often, I found myself checking to see if it was still charged up, or if by some fluke I had missed a call.

As the day wore on, my disappointment increased. I watched my friend open cards from her kids and grandkids. She also received lots of hugs and kisses.

Boy, a great big hug from my son sure would be nice, I thought. It had been almost five months since I’d seen him.

I knew he would be coming home in the next month or so for a short leave. When we talked, he couldn’t say for sure when his visit would be. Possible deployment plans for his unit were up in the air, and he said he was having a hard time pinning anything down. Maybe he would know more when he called.

When I hadn’t heard from him by early afternoon Sunday, which would be getting close to his bedtime, I thought he might be waiting until I got to Sarah’s house. That way, he could talk to both of us and save a few bucks in the process.

As I pulled into Sarah’s driveway a few minutes past the time I had told her I’d be there, panic hit. It didn’t look like anyone was home. I wondered if she had forgotten our visit—or given up on me. But I was only about ten minutes late.

I rang the doorbell. Nothing.

I rang again, then glimpsed a familiar figure walk past the window next to the door. Before my brain could process what I had seen, Nate flung open the door with a huge grin on his face.

What a surprise—and shock! I honestly could not believe what I was seeing for a split second. It was surreal. I just stood there, dumbfounded. And, as usual, Nate was laughing his head off. He had pulled a big one over me and delighted at himself for doing so.

How they managed to keep such a big secret is beyond me. He had flown into Atlanta on Friday and knew he was coming when we talked on the phone earlier that week.

But it made my Mother’s Day the absolute best ever. I got my hug plus a nice long visit with Nate and Sarah, convincing them to follow me to Tuscaloosa for a few days.

This story is part of “The Nathaniel Chronicles: A Columnist’s Bewildering, Crazy, Daunting, Wondrous, Jubilant Journey Through Motherhood.”