Mother's Day

I thought I'd take an opportunity--since it's Mother's Day and all--to say that I love my mom.

She's seriously an awesome lady.  We've always been close (minus this really nasty phase I went through when I was like 11), and I've always thought of her as a friend.  I think that when I was in college there was a lot of tension between us, but that's dissipated since I graduated and everything.  And sure we still have our differences but nothing huge.

I've said this before, but it always merits saying again: my mother is the most generous and giving and kind hearted person I have ever met in my life.  She goes out of her way to be nice, she bends over backwards for people, and she would give you the shirt off her back if you needed it.  I remember, when we were kids, her constantly giving food to our friends' families (we grew up in a poor neighborhood) and to the food bank; everyone we knew knew they could come to her if they needed anything.  (This was one of the benefits of her extreme couponing).  Over the years she's even helped the people in her life who absolutely don't deserve it, because she's just got a big heart.

As a kid, I remember being a little put off by this.  The helping was nice but there were times when I thought she was being used and not standing up for herself, and that frustrated me.  But as an adult, looking back, I think her thought process was that when people were nasty to her, they still needed help; she was always willing to be the bigger person.  As an adult, I see the influence of these things at work in my life every day, and I'm so thankful for that.  There are so many selfish people in the world, who don't think they have any obligation to help, and I'm so glad I'm not one of them.  (Granted, they don't have an obligation to help but I feel like you should want to).  I don't think I'd be nearly as good a person without this influence.

She's also my Dancing With the Stars buddy, and I don't think I'd be as into that show if it weren't for her.  I know it would be a lot less interesting without someone to rehash it with every week!

Anyway, I love you, Mom!  Happy Mother's Day.