An Ode to Mothers

I have several mothers. One biological, one step, and many acquired along the way. My biological mother birthed me, but my step-mother mostly raised me. The other mothers are the mothers of friends or co-workers that have taken on the task of keeping me in line. I owe them all. Even though each one is unique in their own way, I will forever be indebted to the women who have helped structure me to become the person that I am today. And today, I am a mother as well and I hope to instill qualities of all of my "mothers" into my daughter.

My biological mother, I don't see her often, and she wasn't a huge portion of my life when I was younger, but I owe her a big thanks for bringing me into this world. Thank you Mom.  No mother is perfect. She was no exception. She has faults, we all do. I overlook these and am grateful that she gave me life and three other sisters. As I have grown older, I notice that sometimes the decisions mothers make didn't necessarily lead to the best outcomes, but they were definitely believed to be the right thing to do at the time. In the end, we have all survived, we have all grown, and we all still love.

My step-mother, she has been there, through thick, thin, and even through make believe drug deals. I gave my step-mother hell. Not necessarily being a punk, but mostly trying to be a clown. I was embarrassing, still am, and she managed to make it through the days where I almost got us kicked out of local stores. My step-mother gave me a half-sister and gave me support, strength, knowledge, and a great example on how to be there for children even if they aren't biologically yours. Through the years, when I was a challenge to my step-mother, she still demanded love from me and threw it back. Even stronger, even better than before. For her love and support and teaching, I am eternally grateful. Not to mention, she is the best grandmother my daughter could ever ask for.

The other mothers in my life have taken on the task of being friends and other guides to help me grow. With them, I have grown professionally, educationally, spiritually, and any other -ly you could imagine. These other women in my life remind me to get my keys out of the break room or loan me their carpet cleaners. These women have shown me that even though they haven't been in my life for decades, they still love me and my daughter just the same. They have given me the wisdom to help make it through daily life situations in a town not so close to the family that raised me.

In the end, even though I'm a mother, I'm still learning from my mothers, I'm still trying to live by their examples, and I'm trying to be the woman they all wish me to be. I love all of them. I thank all of them. I will always remember them.

Happy Mother's Day! Thank you all!