You all know my mom, Sarah Elizabeth Overby. One of the strongest, most deserving, most loving, most inspiring women that I know. Through the course of the past 8 years, our lives together have "hit the fan," so to speak. For those of you who were never let inside to see the purity of her heart, here's a little bit of our tale.
When my father left a few years ago, my mom and I began to undergo some financial trouble. It was a very hard time for both of us and there was a lot of trial, a lot of pain, and a lot of suffering. Through it all, I was a young girl who needed someone to trust in, and my mom therefore threw all of her needs to the wind and sacrificed her heart, her mind, and her soul in order to give me unconditional and genuine love and condolences. She hasn't stopped doing that since. Financial issues continue to get harder, and she continues to sacrifice any type of luxury or unnecessary expense so that I can have what I want, including sending me off to spend a semester in Africa no matter what type of stress or concern it would cause her. Any time I need money for anything, she forks it over without a thought, knowing that she will find a way to make it work for me. True selflessness.
A lot of people don't know, but my mom truly has a heart for the nations. She loves all shapes, colors, and sizes in a way that is clearly rooted in the Lord. After many, many prayerful nights that God could provide and give her a little bit of stress relief on our financial situation, I woke up this morning to notice that He was going to extend a scholarship that I received for my semester abroad by just enough money to cover a round trip ticket to Tanzania. I told my mom that I received a scholarship and she responded by exclaiming that "Oh I'm so proud of you, now you can have money to actually enjoy Tanzania and do all of the things that you wanted over there! Now you can have the chance to not be so held back by funds! Now I don't have to worry about a monthly allowance!" The interesting thing is, however, that my crazy mother assumed that I wanted to use this money for me. That I would rather spend a day swimming with the dolphins in Zanzibar Island than have $100 more dollars towards a plane ticket to get her out here.
I told her instantly that I wanted to use this money for a plane ticket for her. I wanted to get her over here and share these experiences with her. I can continue to live as cheaply as possible, to constantly save money, and to work hard to pay off other debt. I know that she's stressed about money that is owed, money to come, and the financial hole that we're in that responsibly this money could go towards. Sometimes the people who spend their whole lives giving deserve a chance to receive, though. I want my mom to receive this small gift; truly the least that I can give her. I want her to stop counting pennies to see if she can afford a hostel, to stop worrying about my monthly allowance so that I can see other surrounding countries, to stop making sure I have money to go out to a restaurant for dinner every once in a while. I want her to spend a little time to think about herself, and how much she would love to be here and see the beautiful gift that Africa, and that she has truly given to me.
If you're reading this, facebook message or e-mail my mom. Tell her how much she deserves this. Give her a little bit of encouragement on how amazing she is, and reassure her that I can live cheaply over here. 20 years from now, I won't care if I got the hand tailored skirt of African fabric, or if I got to spend the weekend rafting the Nile in Uganda, or if I got to swim with the dolphins or spend a day on the beach in Zanzibar. I will care if I got to sacrifice those things, in order to help my mom fulfill a dream. So help me convince my mom to let me serve and love on her in a way that she's been serving on and loving me her whole life.
Undeserved, but thank you. I am speechless, and yes, you made me cry tears of joy.
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