My mother is one of my heroes. Let me tell you why.
When I was very ill as a small child, and doctor after doctor couldn’t determine what was wrong, she refused to stop digging until she found the answers herself. (I was celiac, a disease that was almost unknown then.)
She went against convention and social pressures to raise my two siblings and me.
My parents homeschooled us for years, not for religious reasons, but out of a deep conviction that letting us learn by exploring would be better for us than regular schooling. (I’m very glad they did.) She was also into healthy eating, vegetarianism, and cotton clothing years before any of that became trendy. You couldn’t just buy tofu in the grocery store back then – you had to trek to Chinatown to get it.
After my parents separated and later divorced, my mother – in her 40s, having been a stay-at-home mother for my entire life – went back to school and earned a college diploma in computers to make herself more marketable. This, while shepherding three former homeschoolers through some tough years at school. You can bet we stood up and cheered when she crossed the stage at graduation.
She also took on helping us with our homework (before doing her own), doing the bulk of the day-to-day parenting, running interference at our three separate schools, facing the maintenance problems presented by an aging house, managing the household through some lean years, dealing with health problems in the family, re-entering the work world.
My father remarried and moved to a small town an hour’s drive away. Still my mother safeguarded our relationships and time with our father, sharing the taxi duties despite her dislike of driving. We would often spend the weekend there, leaving her to handle our weeknight grumps. When he took us for summer holidays in the Rocky Mountains, she was left out. She never complained.
Our childhood home is empty of children now, all of us far away. The focus of her life for so many years has faded. Still she faces the future with grace and hope and strength, as she always has.
I hope I am as strong a woman someday.
P.S. This week is my mother’s birthday. Happy birthday, Mom. I love you.
Wow. Amazing.
Happy birthday, Siri’s mom! Thanks for growing her up awesome!
Thanks, KD!
Siri
Wow – your Mom is one of my heroes, too. When we were kids, we shared a room, and an old double bed. She would tell me wonderful stories of tiny people who lived in mushroom houses, and draw pictures on my back for me to decipher. When I was old enough to read, she’d write letters and then words for me to guess. Despite almost 4 years between us, she was my best friend growing up. And now, I still spend every Christmas with her (and you and your siblings) as I have since you were about 4 years old and we all ended up living in the same city. She truly is remarkable, and I hope she starts to realize it!
Love! I was always amazed at how well prepared your mom was when you all came for family meals, where my mom was sure to cook something you couldn’t eat. 🙂 Your mom’s life was being a mom – and she took great pride in that! I remember you telling us that she was Mrs. Star when she was your teacher – so that she could differentiate the parts of the day that were family and “school”. Cool home-school idea!
Brenda – That’s a fantastic comment full of things I didn’t know about her…thank you!
Naomi – Memory is a funny thing sometimes. I don’t remember “Mrs. Star,” but clearly it made a big impression on you! I do remember her going to great lengths with food to make sure we were never left out of camps or parties or family dinners…and that was long before “gluten-free” was on anyone’s radar. She’s an amazing woman!
Siri