Dearest mom, Marion Jean Gregory Ziska Gregory…..

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2012!

I wish for  my mother….
All the happiness and love a daughter can give…. I  wish for you that  all of your hopes and dreams  will be  realized…  I wish for you, joy and happiness, laughter
and love, financial independence , prosperity,  freedom from worries and an abundance of
everything your heart desires…. …  a
youthful exuberance …in spirit…. Knowing how much you are loved… how  valued you are to all who have known you….  your presence has…. Made such a positive
difference in my life…. and I wanted to thank you  for enriching our lives in so many ways….

You and dad gave us such an  amazing opportunity  by  taking
our entire family to Saudi…( with Aramco…)
to grow up in a very safe environment that enriched our lives soooo much….
But mom. I have to say… . you were the one who
took full advantage of making sure that we were able to go on the trips
with you… to see all the magnificent sights … to make lifelong memories … to  have so many varied experiences…  interesting cultures… and  even
exotic foods….

You tell me all the time that you love me more than I will
ever know…. and I always want to make sure you know overflows with gratitude  for all that you have done in my life …and  that I want to thank you for everything” more
than you will ever know… “

Dearest mom, I gave you a book  for Mother’s Day a while ago  …  titled:   A mother’s legacy,  your life story in your  own words the book was separated into
different sections the last section entitled “inspiration:   it is a  miracle  how a life can be touched so deeply by one
caring gesture, one small kindness at a time.”

For the insert of the book I wrote:  remember this special day… all for you… the
loving mixture of family, of memories…..  family of memories,  and love,  the warmth of a hug… the kiss hello the joy of
having loved ones near to celebrate…. knowing you….. and loving you…. we are so
blessed to have had such a gift!

Dear mom,  you’re the
light that inspires hope, dreams, and wishes for futures and lives we could
never have imagined possible….. your gifts to your children, your friends, and  your community are so abundant there marked
only by the  stars in the sky… just as
you are the star in our lives… may  you shine
forever….. all my love,  Mary Jean Ziska

I look at these questions and think of the answers you would
write concerning my family and childhood,    and your own childhood…   of how
lives are intertwines with experiences and I think of how these questions could
be answered   by us…by  your children: (the three daughters:  Maura, Mattie , Mary Jean)  how the answers would  draw a picture and illustrate the amazing life
you  provided for us…. All  the opportunities …. And the blessings  just by  having you as a parent…

How can I express to you how my life was made wonderful and
great through the opportunities you provided… you gave us  advantages that not all people have…

One of the questions in the book asked who has made the greatest impact on your life?

I would have to say, one of the people who made an indelible
mark upon my life has been my family with my mother as the matriarch she has
been a source of comfort, inspiration, guidance, a constant  source of love,  encouragement all of my life  and my life has been made  better because she  was  a
part of it….

another question what
are the most important characteristics of a good friend?

Two other questions  under the topic of events:   do you enjoy travel why or why not? What
was the most fun, interesting or exciting places you’ve ever visited?

Please share a
cherished memory from a family holiday celebration:

Did you begin any
new traditions with your children

Is there anything
you know now that you wish you’d known when you first became a mother?

What similarities
do you see between yourself and your children

what are your most
vivid memories of your children’s earliest years

what activities
did you most enjoy with your children when they were young

how did becoming a
mother change your life

in what ways are
you like your mother what is a favorite memory of your mother grandma Gregory

what was your
mother’s attitude toward life how did her attitude affect you

Mom I thought  it
would be fun …. And more productive if instead of my rambling on about how much
I love and cherish you…. we could answer these together…. On Christmas…. All these
questions  sparks so many memories and
thoughts that I wanted to be able to share  them with you…

The true test of a mother to me is 1 Kings 16:28

then two women who would become mothers out of wedlock came
and stood before the King and one woman said oh my Lord, I  and  this women dwell in one house; I was delivered
of a child with her in the house. The third day after  I was delivered, this woman also  delivered. We were together; no stranger was
with us, just we two in the house. And this woman’s child died in the night
because she lay on him. At midnight  she  took my son from  beside me while your handmaiden slept and laid  her  dead child in my arms . When I rose to nurse
my child behold he was dead but when I had considered him in the morning behold
it was not the son I had born  but  the other woman said no! The living one is my
son and the dead one is your son! And this one said no! But the dead son is
your son and the living is my son. Thus they spoke before the King.  That  this is my son that is alive and yours is the
dead one. The other woman says no! But your son is the dead one and mine is the
living one. And the king said bring me a sword, and they brought a sword to the
King. The King said divide the living child in two and give half to the one and
half to the other than the mother of the living child said to the king for she
yearned over her son, “oh my Lord give her the living baby and by  no means slay him” but the other said “let him
not be mine or yours but divide him.”   And the king said ” give her who pleads for
his life the living baby by no means slay him. She is the child’s mother”  and all Israel heard of the judgment which the
king had made and they stood in awe of him for they saw that the wisdom of God
was in him to do justice

this  story was  about  King Solomon

the Testament of a true mother to me has been  in the  end …the selfless  gift of wanting a child to be happy healthy
with a prosperous life….  the  Testament of the mother is what she will do to
make sure her child is able to follow dreams , hopes, goals, and passions… …
Without hurting anyone, with the sole intention of making lives better, a true
mother goes to any length to not only protect her child… support her child… but
also to make their lives better…

Looking back, My mother provided us with such an amazing
childhood…. I  could have never dreamed of
all the  opportunities she provided for
us…. the plan she had for making our life experiences extraordinary…. for
fulfilling and exceeding expectations of not only a motherly love but of
exceeding a mother’s  capabilities…. You were
the village that raised a child… actually three children…  and we learned so much… and  am so  grateful  for so  the many
wonderful experiences…

I love you now and  always…  god bless, merry Christmas.. and happy new
year… luv mary jean Ziska

 ps.  Mom I’ll add to this note once we have had a chance to chat
about  all those questions… HA!