"A lick and a promise,"

mom would say, 

when we kids were cleaning house with her.

Such a valuable lesson--

baby steps, little steps,

or as Mother Teresa would say,

"small things done with great love."

I have no memory of mom ever rushing--

5 kids, a traditional husband, and a part-time job teaching, 

she just took things slow and steady.

I rushed alot in my adulthood of husband, kids, career.

Then I remember mom,

she is passed now,

but the rhythmic pace of her movement lives in me--

slow down, honeybunch,

watch the ants crawl on the hot summer sidewalk,

and relax.