Who is Margaret Pearl?

My mother was an extraordinary woman. Loving, gentle, kind, generous, open hearted and open minded, she looked for the good in everyone and never spoke unfavorably to or about anyone. She was the example of what it meant to be compassionate and giving. Her unconditional love for my sister, brother and me was evidenced in everything she said and did. Her affection for us was abundant. Her touch alone was filled with love and comfort. She was quick to compliment and praise and loved surprising us with little gifts, taking us on whimsical adventures and making even the most mundane tasks feel fun. My mother’s greatest joy was giving of herself, her time, and her care.

We are a fortunate, close, loving family; however, my mother’s childhood was not without adversity. Growing up during the Great Depression and coming of age during World War II, she was the only child of two very caring though not openly affectionate parents. Although her homelife was sometimes shadowed by her father’s bouts of depression, her stories about her childhood revealed her resilience. It was my mother’s nature to look for the positive in everything, rise to the challenge and, as she often would say, “make the best of things.”

Her first marriage left her a widow. In the late 1940s, she married a man whom she knew had Hotchkin’s lymphoma. She loved him and married him because she wanted to make him as happy and comfortable as possible in the brief time he had left which was sadly little more than a year.

Several years later, in May of 1952, my mother met my father, Donald Parcells, on a blind date. He had been a strategic bomber pilot during WWII, and was involved in the critical Battle of the Bridge at Remagen. Though he spent his career in management with Connecticut Blue Cross Blue Shield Insurance Company, he never lost his love of aviation and his admiration and awe for the heavens. Later in retirement he joyfully returned to the sky for a while to take flying lessons – first gliders and then small planes. It was he who taught me, by example, to always look up – literally and figuratively.

My parents fell in love immediately after that first blind date and were married on November 1^st, , just six months later. They were, as many would say, a handsome couple. My father, from almost the first day he met my mother, called her Sugar – because, he said, “She is so sweet.”

My mother approached life with a sense of wonder and awe; she took nothing for granted and was grateful for everything. She was intelligent, resourceful, curious, capricious, fun-loving, and had a great sense of humor. She loved learning and was always involved in creative projects from oil painting and tole painting to basket weaving, stained glass, and rug braiding.

My mother’s positive attitude and determination was actually my early model for manifestation long before I understood or even knew of the Universal Laws. Whenever she had a desire or wanted something to work out, and it seemed impossible, she would say, “There is always a way!” This attitude was also a result of her faith and belief in God and the power of prayer. No matter what she knew that faith and prayer would guide her and her family through any difficulty. We were always comforted by her assuring, often repeated words, “It’s all right. Everything is all right.”

Through the years, she suffered from several health issues; however, she seldom complained and was perpetually optimistic. She was devoted to my father, her 3 children and 2 granddaughters. I could not have asked for a better and more perfect grandmother for my daughter, Margot, who is her namesake. My mother was so overwhelmed with joy and moved to tears when I gave birth to my daughter and told her I named her Margot – a form of Margaret – in her honor. She was like a second mother to Margot, and they adored each other.

For as long as I can remember, my mother was always doing something to help others – fundraising for cancer, driving and delivering for Meals on Wheels, knitting lap robes for cancer patients, reading to individuals who were blind and visiting and befriending people in long term care facilities who had no one who came to see them.

My mother was my best friend, my greatest supporter, my confidant, hero, and role model. She was always there for me – always had time to listen and help – always had the wisest advice and solutions to problems. She shared in all of my triumphs and sorrows and most importantly, saw me through a long, difficult and dark period that lasted several years. I know I would not have made it through that time and into the light without her.

My mother and I shared many inspiring and magical times together over the years. We loved going out for lunch or tea, and to galleries, museums, and historic homes, but most of all we just loved being together.

She understood me and my spiritual journey deeply and completely. I was fortunately able to share all the gorgeous and life-changing details of my Light Experience with her shortly before Alzheimer’s began to steel her memory and eventually her ability to converse and everything else.

As the disease progressed, my father lovingly and diligently cared for her in their home with the part-time assistance of a health care aid. My sister, brother and I all helped out too with my sister assuming the lion’s share of managing my mother’s healthcare. Years later she would do the same for our father. My brother and I remain ever grateful to her for the skillful, thorough and efficient way she made sure both of our parents received the best care possible. Her efforts contributed greatly to their long and high quality of life.

Ultimately, my mother lost her ability to converse, although she remained able to say my father’s name and to say, “I love you” to each of us. Alzheimer’s could not steel that from her, and it speaks to the essence of who my mother was.

Providing Pathways for Total Well-Being in Body, Mind and Spirit
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