Creating Moms

It was the sixth day of overtime when the Creator was creating Mothers and an Angel appeared and said, "You're doing a lot of fiddling around on this one."

And the Creator said, "Have you read the specs on this order? She has to be completely washable, but not plastic, have 180 movable parts, all replaceable. She has to run on black coffee and leftovers. She has to have a lap that disappears when she stands up. A kiss that can cure anything from a broken leg to a disappointed love affair and she has to have six pairs of hands."

The Angel shook her head slowly and said, "Six pairs of hands? No way!"

"Well, it's not the hands that are causing me problems," said the Creator. "It's the three pairs of eyes that Mothers have to have."

"That's on the standard model?" asked the Angel.

The Creator nodded. "One pair that sees through closed doors when she asks, 'What are you kids doing in there?' when she already know. Another in the back of her head that sees what she shouldn't, but what she has to know. And of course, the ones here in front so she can look at a child who goofs and say, 'I understand, and I love you' without so much as uttering a word."

"Creator," urged the Angel gently, "Come to bed. Tomorrow is another day."

"I can't," said the Creator. "I am so close to creating something so close to myself. Already I have one who heals herself when she's sick, can feed a family of six on a pound of lettuce, and get a nine year old to stand under a shower."

The Angel circled the model of the Mother very slowly. "It's so soft," she sighed.

"Ah, but tough!" said the Creator excitedly. "You can't imagine what this mother can endure."

"Can it think?"

"Not only can she think, but she can reason and compromise," said the Creator.

Finally, the Angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek. "Ah! There's a leak," she pronounced. "What's it for?"

"It's for joy and sadness and disappointment and pain and loneliness and pride."

"You're a genius," said the Angel.

The Creator looked somber. "I didn't put it there."