NATCHEZ &8212; A bike-riding trail for two young boys now holds a much deeper meaning for them as men &8212; Marva Stewart.

Brothers Richard and Gary Stewart spent part of their Mother&8217;s Day in the Natchez City Cemetery visiting childhood memories and the resting spot of their mother.

&8220;We used to ride our bikes all up through here,&8221; Richard Gary said, pointing towards the tombstone-lined, rolling hills. &8220;Now we come back to visit our mother.&8221;

The brothers lived in a family of five boys and one girl, but had a mother who never missed a beat, both said.

&8220;It wasn&8217;t like kids and what they can get away with nowadays,&8221; Gary Stewart said. &8220;We didn&8217;t talk back to her because she was a very strict person. She taught us the value of right and wrong.&8221;

Richard Gary, employed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a mechanic, said his mother wanted him to go to college, but he had different plans.

&8220;She wanted me to go to college and I wanted to go to the service,&8221; Gary said. &8220;So when I turned 18 we talked and I went to the service.&8221;

Richard spent five active years in the service and 23 as a reserve spending time in Iraq.

&8220;We used to make guns to shoot china balls with and shoot people,&8221; Richard said. &8220;One day she saw us doing that and turned around and shot me with one.&8221;

The lesson, Richard said, was one he will never forget.

&8220;Yeah, it hurt, but it made me realize you have to think about what you are doing, even if you are playing most of the time.&8221;

Gary&8217;s memories were the same just included different experiences. Now employed by the Concordia School System, he recalled times when his mother came to his rescue.

&8220;When I was in college, I was working on a diesel engine and it fell down on my hand,&8221; Gary said holding the hand he had once pulled all the fingernails off of. &8220;The first thing I did was call her and she fussed and said I should have known better, but came and got me and took me to the hospital.&8221;

The boys both took different paths in adulthood, but still recall the fond memories of growing up in a crowded house controlled by one woman.

&8220;She loved to come together as a family and cook,&8221; Gary said. &8220;Even when we were gone ,she cooked as much as if we were still there and now I do the same thing.&8221;

Not only did the boys learn self-discipline and the difference between right and wrong, they learned how to cook.

&8220;She used to always tell us she only had one daughter and she wasn&8217;t going to work her that hard for all of us boys,&8221; Richard said smiling. &8220;I will never forget her having us up in that kitchen trying to teach us how to cook.&8221;

Marva Stewart worked three jobs to get the children what they needed, but never forgot to send the children to church.

&8220;Even when she went to work on Sundays, she would send someone by the house to pick us up for church,&8221; Gary Stewart said. &8220;Now as an adult, the older I get, the more I go back to it (church).&8221;

Marva Stewart would have turned 65 on April 24 of this year, but will never be forgotten by her two sons.

&8220;I spent many days on my bike here and have a lot of good memories,&8221; Gary Stewart said. &8220;It all paid off.&8221;