Murrs Across America

Day sponsor Dr. Wendy Anderson of Drury University has declined the mother of the year award this year in favor of honoring our common mother: Earth. Wendy, director Campus Sustainability, is is passionate about promoting sustainability initiatives on campus, within the community, and across the globe. Recently Drury was listed as a “green” university by the Princeton Review due in large part to Wendy’s leadership on projects that helped Drury make the list, including the geothermal heating and cooling conversion of Stone Chapel, the O’Reilly Family Event Center’s LEED Gold status, and solar panel installation on Smith Hall.

Thank you to Wendy and the Drury community for all the enduring work you do to benefit the planet. Happy Mother’s Day!

“We’re sitting on our blessed Mother Earth from which we get our strength and determination, love and humility – all the beautiful attributes that we’ve been given. So turn to one another; love one another; respect one another; respect Mother Earth; respect the waters – because that’s life itself!”
-Wolfdyke Phil Lane, Sr. (Yankton Sioux)

This morning we’re enjoying a leisurely breakfast with new friends Terry and Linda in Fair Hope, Alabama. They picked up the stray Murrs at Tamara’s Steamers last night and escorted us to their home where they poured us small barrel glasses of Southern Comfort from their heirloom green glass eagle. We enjoyed conversation and a comfortable evening, and I’m currently taking notes on motherhood from Linda, mother of four, grandmother of seven. She says you can’t be close enough to your children or teach them enough. As a mother you’ve got to do these things and instill honesty and respect. If you clarify these expectation from the very beginning, she says, you teach your children to think about outcomes, which develops self control and trust as the children grow.