Daughter's (every)Day
Today is the day you'll see people posting about how awesome their mom is - how loving, caring, kind, strong, beautiful and smart she is, and how lucky they are to have her. Sadly, you'll also read posts about how much their mom is missed, and how amazing she was. All of it is true, from the heart, and incredibly lovely to read. It just fills me with so much warmth.
Mother's Day is, no doubt, a day to celebrate every mom. And, if you're anything like me, you start thinking of all the memories you have with your mom - the funny, the touching, the crazy, the good, the bad, the thanks-for-bailing-me-out-mom memories that make every day feel like Daughter's Day. To name just a few that come to the forefront...
...watching my mom in the mirror-covered wall at my dance class every Thursday night. She'd be sitting there, intently watching me and also socializing with the other dance moms, after a long day at work - probably sometimes exhausted, especially as a single mom - and it always looked like there was no place she'd rather be. So, I tap-tap-tapped all over that floor.
...when one Christmas Eve, my family dared her to get into a large gift bag. And, she did. All 5'0" of her. The entire room exploded into laughter and tears rolled down all of our cheeks from laughing so hard. I think there are photos somewhere, but I have no idea where. The mental picture is enough to make me giggle out loud to this day.
They did not look like this.
...I once came home really late, at the age of 17, after a high school party - a wee bit drunk. Probably on, like, three Zimas. I remember crawling up our stairs to my bedroom, as quietly as I could...and as I neared the top stair - I saw feet. My mom's feet. "You don't feel so good, do you" she asked. I shook my head, and she put me to bed. The next morning, I was awoken by the smell of breakfast cooking. I remember thinking, wow - she's not even mad. She's even making me breakfast! I have the best mom EVER. And, when I got to my seat, I was served the runniest, most greasy eggs I've ever seen. The phlegm-y yolk creeped across my plate to my toast, like a science experiment. These were not normal eggs over-easy. My stomach churned, and I got all hot and - I lost it. Literally - I ran to the bathroom and lost.it.all. She knew exactly what she was doing. I have the best mom ever.
...when I had learned how to do corkscrew curls with a curling iron - a la my idol Mariah Carey - and wanted to wear my hair like that to the varsity football game - and she told me it looked "too sexy." Looking back, it looked absolutely awful, and anything but sexy, but okay. She said if I wanted to go to the game, I had to brush it out. When I did, it fell in romantic cascading waves over my shoulders, and I thought "This looks sexy..." I won that one. Sorry, mom.
...every time we're shopping, and she holds up an article of clothing that is so not my style and I think she is kidding and I die laughing. But, she is sometimes serious. Then we both laugh hysterically.
...how much I miss her. How we talk every single day, sometimes a couple times a day. I can't imagine a day going by that I don't talk to her at least briefly.
...all the times I've cried into her arms, and she'd run her hands over my hair and squeeze me tightly. It could have been anything from a breakup to just normal girl emotions - but when she'd see my face start to crinkle, she'd envelop me into a warm reminder that I wasn't alone, after all. Most recently, we both crinkled up when we caught each other's faces as I prepared to fly back home to California from New York.
...when she walked me down the aisle. I had taken some time and debated whether to walk alone, or with her. And, it seemed only natural that the woman who has shown me the most profound meaning of love by being the driving force in my life that makes me the woman I am, would walk me down to the man who loves me completely. Because, I was never alone. I was always enveloped.
Thank you, momma. I love you immensely.
Happy Mother's Day to all of you extremely important women!