MAMA DIES
Mama Dies
This is story #33 out of 50 from my book, “My Walk With the
Lord”. This story is dedicated in memory of my mother, Mary Ruth
Winn Rozier, October 22, 1929 thru January 7, 2001.
Proverbs 31:31 “Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her
own works praise her in the gates.”
Mama was tired, her body was frail, and her spirit was broken.
She had fought a good fight, but the battle scars were too many.
She was 71 years old and weighed 71 pounds. As I briefly touch
on some of the events in her life, you will understand her
desires to go home to rest.
Mama and her twin sister were born October 22, 1929. Her
parents, Archie and Ruth Gill Winn, named them Mary and Mildred.
Aunt Mildred was tall and thin, and Mama was shorter and had
more meat on her bones. They grew up in South Georgia with six
other siblings. Uncle Jasper was killed in World War II so I
never knew him. Her two other brothers and three other sisters
were all kind and humble people. One thing about Mama’s family
was the love they had one for the other. Materially they were
not rich, but the good Lord had richly blessed them in the
things that money can’t buy. As I write this, I can remember
growing up as a child and later during my adulthood of being
around all those aunts, uncles, cousins and of course grandpa
and granny. Mama passed on this value of family to me and my
four sisters.
Grandpa Winn died on November 17, 1963 just a few days before
President Kennedy was killed. Granny died May 20, 1986. One by
one their children followed them in death. As I write this
today, May 25, 2003, only Mama’s twin, Aunt Mildred, and her
baby sister, Aunt Ida Mae Walker, are still living.
Mama and Daddy married young. Daddy had served in the Pacific in
the later part of World War II and as most young men of those
days was happy to get back home and marry his sweetheart. My
oldest sister was born in 1948, followed by next sister in 1949,
then me in 1952, my next sister in 1953, and then my baby sister
in 1956. I believe they wanted a brother for me, but it didn’t
happen. I wouldn’t take all the money in the world for my
sisters! They are all smart, wonderful mothers, super good
cooks, and very compassionate and loving. Their names (in order
are): Shirley, Evelyn, Linda and Joanne. I always remember Daddy
saying, “God has surely given me beautiful girls!”
Mama and Daddy struggled financially at first. The small 2
bedroom frame home couldn’t hold all of us. This house didn’t
have an indoor bathroom (we had a chamber pot and an outhouse).
I remember Mama heating water on the stove so us children could
bathe in a number two washtub (a galvanized tub about three feet
diameter). Daddy sold furniture and picked up odd jobs to make
ends meet. Then one day something wonderful happened to him. He
was born again!
Once a man becomes a new creature in Jesus Christ, he begins to
pray for his family. A few years after his salvation, the Lord
called Daddy to preach and he was ordained as a minister.
Daddy’s prayers for a better paying job were answered and we
moved from Patterson to Blackshear. I was seven years old when
we moved to a rented house with an indoor bathroom. The girls
and Mama were happy!
Well, Daddy continued to pray. He wanted us to have our own
place. God answered this prayer and in 1962 we moved to a 15
acre pecan orchard. We had a house, barn, chickens, hogs, cows,
ducks and a good garden spot.
Daddy was pleased. He was a pastor of a neighborhood church and
continued to sell and deliver furniture.
Mama was 37 when the Lord called Daddy home. There were four of
us left at home. For the next ten years, Mama was a single
parent. She made many personal sacrifices for us. She also
trusted God and He helped her to raise us.
In 1976, she remarried a good man, Euell Deal. He only lived
about two and one half years after she remarried. At 49 years of
age, Mama had lost two husbands yet by God’s grace and comfort,
she continued on.
In 1980, she remarried. This time, the man was not so good. At
first he was; he went to church, took Mama places, and was
pretty good to her. Mama was reasonably happy and content with
her life.
Then the false Christian reared his ugly head. First, he started
with mental abuse, then physical, and sexual abuse. Over the
years, this stress took a toil on Mama. She wouldn’t talk much
about it, she would say, “You just don’t know.” You see, she was
unequally yoked. Here she was a lamb, and she was plowing with a
jackass.
Her health begin to deteriorate. One thing right after another.
She fell and broke her pelvis in four places. She experienced
anxiety attacks. Her nerves were all to pieces.
Finally, in 1998, she went to live at Baptist Village, a
retirement home in Waycross. Several years earlier, Mama had
worked there, and she liked the place. She refused to be
divorced from this “man” so she was still married. This move got
her away from him. She was improving but other problems popped
up and she gradually went down hill.
On January 5, 2001, I received a telephone call from Baptist
Village. Mama took a turn for the worse. I went over there and
just sat. It was just the two of us. I sure did hate to see her
suffer so. Her breathing was labored and as I looked at her, I
thought soon her labors will be over.
Around 12:30 PM, the next day, our family began to gather in her
room. We would talk to her and smooth her fevered face with a
cool rag. One of the staff stated, “She probably won’t last two
hours.” Little did they know about the inner strength my Mama
possessed. As her children, grandchildren, sisters, other
relatives, and friends would come and have short visits, I knew
Mama recognized the voices of the ones she loved. Later that
Saturday night, around 11:30 PM, I bent over and whispered in
Mama’s ear, “Mama, it’s all right to go ahead and rest. We will
be fine. Tell Daddy I said hello when you get home.”
Mama hung on until her granddaughter, Erin, arrived after
midnight. Her breathing became more and more labored and her
fever rose. About 1:25 AM, I felt the presence of the Holy Ghost
as the words of a song came to my mind. The words were: “It hurt
us so to see Mama go, to be gone forever more. But before she
closed her eyes in death, I heard a knocking on the door. A band
of angels just walked in to take her home to glory.”
I felt a slight breeze and at 1:32 AM, January 7, 2001, Mama was
carried by the angels to her new home. O death, where is thy
sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
Sunday morning, I went to preach at the nursing home, and that
evening we gathered at the funeral home to make arrangements.
Several years earlier, Mama had wanted me to go there with her
and look at coffins and make some preliminary funeral
arrangements. She liked Mitchell Bowen who was part owner of the
funeral home. She thought Mitchell would do (later, Mitchell ran
for and won the county commissioner race. When he asked me to
vote for him, I said, “Mitchell, you got my vote. Mama thought
highly of you and that’s good enough for me.”). Well, I didn’t
know that the funeral home had changed ownership. Blake Smith
had bought it and Mama’s was to be his first funeral. Blake is a
young man who is ideally suited for this profession. His genuine
concern, professionalism, and support are rare in this day and
age.
At the funeral wake, over 700 people came by to pay their last
respects to my Mama. She had touched many lives with her quiet,
humble, gentle ways. She was now reaping what she had sowed over
the years.
The chapel was overflowing at Mama’s funeral service. The
flowers were so bountiful and so beautiful. Mama did love
flowers. I had the special honor of speaking a few words during
the funeral service. I quoted this scripture: Matthew 25, verses
34-36: “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand,
Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for
you from the foundation of the world: For I was hungred, and ye
gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a
stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was
sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.”
This scripture described Mama to a tee.
The Lord anointed the two preachers, he anointed the singing,
and sent us comfort for our loss. It was a sweet service for a
sweet Mama. Thank you Lord that you care for your “Little
children”.
Mama still lives in our hearts and memories. Most importantly,
things were okay between her and her Lord. I’ll see her again
one day, never to be separated again.
Luke 2.19: “But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in
her heart.”
Copyright 2003 Irvin L. Rozier
FOOTNOTE; In late November, 2003, I was interviewed by our local
paper, THE BLACKSHEAR TIMES, about the publication of my book.
Before we started, the reporter, Jason Deal, said, “I want to
show you something”. He handed me a graduation card my Mama had
sent him about ten years earlier. It was Mama’s handwriting that
said congratulations upon your accomplishment. This had a double
meaning to me…showed one of the people my Mama touched and it
was like her saying to me, “Congrats on writing and publishing
your book.”
