Who is Bird?

We keep talking about the Bird on your shoulder so... I guess you are wondering who is Bird?  Bird was my mother.  She was born in the 40's, a sweet little blonde girl named Robbie Brown.  Sweet, but she was known to beat up boys who picked on her little brother.  She passed away in 2009 but not before living a large and fabulous life.  She was on earth for 63 years and enjoyed and squeezed the life out of everyday.  Of course she had bad days....we all do.  But, she taught me to enjoy and walk through the bad days so you can really enjoy the good ones! 

How did she get the name Bird?  Well, I (Lisa) her firstborn daughter had her firstborn granddaughter (Courtney) and Courtney decided to call her Bird instead of Grandmother.  Once Courtney started calling her Bird all our family and friends started calling her Bird too!   She was known as Bird to everyone the last 20 years of her life.

We call her the Bird on our shoulder because she taught us all so much.  She was the life of the party, she could cook the best meals, she always bought the perfect present, she taught us all to dance, she played games with us, and she took us on trips (the beach, the mountains and every where in-between).  She planned and executed the best parties.  She loved to shop and wanted all her girls to dress nice.  She always had a joke and a story and she LOVED!  In her eyes we were the best and the brightest, even when we weren't.  We could do no wrong except when we did and we would have to cut our own switch.  She spanked us and we are all better for it!  She planned all our weddings and they were unique to us and all fun.  She taught us the real gold in life was friendships, because she had the best of friends.  She taught us what it is like to have a day when you hold a love one's hand and watch them enter into heaven.  She taught us to be strong, like the day she gave the eulogy of her husband.  She taught us to make lists...for everything and we all do.  She taught us to not take ourselves so seriously and to laugh and laugh we do...we laugh at each other and ourselves.  We still use her sayings.  We still tell her jokes.  We still dance.  We still play games.  We still try to enjoy and make the most of everyday because we want her to be proud of the women (and men) she raised.  To this day she is a part of our everyday life and the way we do things.....SHE is the Bird on our shoulders. 

Now just incase you think she had a fairy tale life, she did not.  She had a real life, full of ups and downs, good days and bad.  She had two failed marriages and when she finally found her soul mate she only enjoyed 25 years with him before he passed away.  She was a single mom on a secretary's salary...which meant she had no money (But I never knew we didn't have money).  She raised 3 girls, 1 boy and 5 grandchildren.  She could have easily been a victim and cowered in a corner somewhere.  But that was not Bird!  No, she chose to be happy most everyday and taught us all that good comes with bad.  She never would let us feel sorry for ourselves for very long.  If we had a bad day or someone hurt our feelings, she would say, "They already stole enough from you.  Don't let them steal anymore.  Do not give them space in your head."  I can still hear her whispering in my ear..."As soon as the door shuts, move on."  We could pout, cry, or be sad until a door shut. Then it was time to move on, because life is short.

To answer the question, who is Bird?  Bird was a great and wise lady that will live on in each of us.  She is who I strive to be every day. SHE shaped the world SHE lived in and the one to come, because SHE knew SHE was shaping the future! Here's to the SHE I want to be. I want to be like Bird.



Lisa B