This Mother’s Day was a quiet one for Clif and me. For the first time in many years, we had neither daughter to celebrate the day with us. After sighing sadly, I decided we would still celebrate with simple pleasures, which is how we celebrate all special days. And so we did.

In the morning, Clif made pancakes for breakfast, and while I know it’s bragging, I must say that his are the absolute best. Period.

After pancakes, while we were cleaning the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Puzzled as to who would be at the door on Mother’s Day, I answered it and discovered it was a Federal Express delivery. There was a package for me, from Shari’s Berries.  My heart skipped a beat. Chocolate-covered strawberries! Sent to me by Shannon, who when she called to wish me a happy Mother’s Day, admitted she was a little blue not to be here, and she wanted me to have something sweet. While chocolate-covered strawberries could never take Shannon’s place, I will admit they were a sweet consolation. Shari’s Berries makes wonderful chocolate-covered strawberries, with berries that are so sweet and ripe. A real treat.

I also want to add that from each daughter, I received a gift certificate to a local greenhouse. Another perfect gift as they know how much I love flowers.

Because the day was rainy, Clif and I decided to go to Railroad Square in Waterville to see a movie—The Congressman with Treat Williams.  This amiable movie is about, well, a Maine congressman, Charlie Winship, who doesn’t stand during the pledge of allegiance—he was busy doing paperwork—and the ensuing brouhaha . The Congressman was actually filmed in Maine, much of it on beautiful Monhegan Island, where WInship goes to help settle a fishing dispute. This might sound like an odd thing to praise, but indeed most movies and television series set in Maine are not filmed here, and boy oh boy it doesn’t take Mainers long to figure this out.

While The Congressman examines serious issues—free speech, the undue influence of lobbyists and the right wing as well as the overfishing of the ocean—this movie skims the surface the way rocks skip over water in a pond. Treat Williams is a very appealing actor, and he had his Jimmy Stewart moment when he expanded on freedom of speech. Heck, he even quoted Margaret Chase Smith, a beloved Maine senator who stood up to the bully Joseph McCarthy. But nothing really seemed at stake in this predictable movie. Nevertheless, both Clif and I enjoyed it, and so, it seems, did many other people—the large cinema was three-quarters full. After all, predictable isn’t always bad.

When we got home, there was one more treat in store—crab salad sandwiches and hand-cut fries. I was so eager to eat this supper that I forgot to take a picture, but, readers, let me assure you, the sandwich and fries were pretty darned good.

So even though both girls live too far to celebrate Mother’s Day with me, all in all, it was a nice Mother’s Day.