Mama's Gift

My mama had a special gift that she carried with her through-out her life. A lot of people could never comprehend this gift because they didn't understand it, but they are still talking about it today. She had the ability to cure the thrash (also known as the thrush). Now some may be saying, what is the thrash? It's when the inside of the mouth gets covered with tiny, painful  blisters and the mouth can become so sore that it's hard to eat or sleep and a person can become miserable. Mama always said it could travel through-out the body and pass through the bowels if left untreated, which is exactly what happened to a few people before they learned about mama's cure. She always said there were three kinds of thrash, red, white and yellow. She could tell what kind they had by looking in their mouth and by the color of the blisters. We never knew what she used, the only person that knew was daddy and she only told him because she needed him to get her medicine (as she called it), and he never failed to get it. It didn't matter about the weather or the time of year, then after he got it he would slip it into her hands. There was a lot of speculation about what it might have been. May have been a leaf, an herb or maybe even bark from a tree, especially during the winter. But daddy wasn't about to tell because he knew how important it was to mama and her secret cure. Oh we kidded him about it alot but he would just laugh and go on.

They came from far and near over the years. Folks that we didn't even know and had heard about it by word of mouth or some other way. Even her own medical doctor started sending people to her because he hadn't got any results with his methods. She never once turned anyone away. The adults not only came for themselves but they brought their small children, even infants (I remember one that was only three weeks old).She would take the small children into another room and bring them straight back and the adults she had to blindfold because she didn't want them to see what she did. Then she would always tell them that on the third day to expect it to get a little worse but it should get well after that. If not, for them to come back and she would do it again. A few had to come a second time because they had it so bad. I remember one elderly lady came three times before she finally got well. She sure did sing mama's praises after that, not that mama wanted any praises sung. But she did expect some to come again because it was such a bad case and the fact that she had done it so much she certaintly could tell the first time.She even performed her magic on me one time, blindfolded of course and to this day I don't know what she did but it surely did work. She took my son (her grandson) down into the cornfield one day when he was about two years old  and I could tell a lot of difference in his mouth in just a day or two. But for everyone she treated she would do it and walk away, for she knew in her heart it would work. I admired her faith so much sometimes it would bring tears to my eyes.

So today as I reflect back upon it all I truly believe it was her life's mission to help anyone that came along in a way that no one else could. She demonstrated that her whole life. It touches my heart so much today when someone tells me how mama cured them of the thrash and the fact that they didn't know what they would have done without her. And now even though she's gone her legacy lives on, not only in my heart but the many hearts she touched through-out her lifetime. Thank you Mama for your precious gift and your many acts of kindness but most of all thank you for being my mother and your un-dying love. I promise that you or your many gifts will never be forgotten...    Susie Swanson