This being Mothers Day I can not help but think of my own mother, and all that she meant to me. Her name was Alice (Martin) Langlois. She was a child of the Great Depression and a member of “The Greatest Generation”. Though she died over 10 years ago her love and memories are still so fresh, like she is still with us.
My mother was one of 8 children. Her father and half of her brothers and sisters died in influenza out breaks over a period of several years. That left my grandmother to support and bring up Alice and the rest of the family her self.
After high school Alice ended up graduating from an all male business college as a CPA, and making it big in the all male business world at that time. She was so good at what she did, that the men of the day overlooked the fact that she was a woman, and did business with her. She had more clients then she knew what to do with!
My mother wasn’t suppose to be able to have children, but a bit later in life she had one child…me. Boy where my parents surprised! lol 
However, even though she was in the business world of her time, my mother made a wonderful home for my dad and me. The dinners she made every night, looking back on things, were nothing but amazing – especially considering her work schedule. Her famous potato salad we called “Alice’s Own”, was made for every cookout and it was something we all looked forward to with much delight.
Alice had a great sense of humor, which was amazing considering at one point in her life half her family died from influenza. While growing up, my three sons and all their friends called my mother “Nana” and they couldn’t have loved her more. Today, as my sons joined me for Mother’s Day, they all mentioned their Nana from time to time, and her overflowing love of family and life, her great sense of humor and her “wicked awesome” patio salad.
Alice always use to say: “Smile, it can be contagious.” And boy, she had quite a smile. You didn’t dare be a sourpuss around her, for she always had supply of pens she had made up that said “Smile, it can be contagious” and with a smile on her own face, she would hand you one of her pens and walk off.
So today is Mother’s Day 2010: I myself had a great day with my children and their families, wanted to take this time to also remember my own loving mother, and to wish all the moms and future mothers out there a Happy Mother’s Day. So smile and make patio salad….. it always says “love”
Chris
