To the Woman I Call Mom

To the woman I call Mom, 

From day one I have looked like a female replica of my dad,

Yet I see so much of you within myself

Even though there is not a feature of yours to be had

…

I am your firstborn, your little brown-eyed girl

Even in my childhood, I always knew that I was your world

You’ve taught me all you know, more and more every day

It is my hope that my eager self has taught you some things along the way

…

Every memory I cherish is bursting with images of you

Not a single wish or want went unfulfilled, there was nothing you wouldn’t do

From walks in the parks to trips to the zoo, 

To the simple joys of cuddling up in your arms, just us two

…

As time raced by, I grew up before your eyes

Eventually, the school years came and we had our share of cries

As you helped me get ready and each day became littered with goodbyes

I went off to learn about the world, but unlike you Mom, I was too shy

…

You have always been at my side for any hurdle I have faced

You taught me social skills, how to be assertive, and know my deserved place

While learning how to come out of my shell felt like opening a sacred gate, 

You stood by me, hand in hand, ready to lessen the severity of the weight

…

It should come as no surprise that in my adolescence I was drowning in my own emotions

Depression had its grips tight around me, and despite my efforts, I felt defeated and frozen

Little did I know that years before you had wrestled with the same feelings and it had caused a large commotion,

So you knew all the right things to say, all the right motions

You saved me, Mom, you prevented the rest of my life from being stolen

…

I attribute all of my successes in life to modeling your drive and determined attitude

Although I am your opposite, still fiery yet softer, quieter-we each have our own aptitudes

You once told me that I am a better person than you

But Mom, you have influenced every decision I have made to voice what I believe in, I don’t think you understand the magnitude

…

I want to thank you for all the sacrifices you have made for me and my siblings

Despite all the hardships, you have always managed to keep me smiling and giggling

I know you would say it is your duty as our Mom and our love is fulfilling,

But I know things have not been easy, and to admit so is not belittling 

…

I wish to one day be as great as you have been to me and my brothers

Thanks to you, we have, and never will know what it is like to suffer

As an adult, there are still new things about you to love that I discover

But at the end of the day, I just want to thank you for being my Mother

…

To the woman I call Mom, 

On that rainy April night we call my birthday,

You gained a daughter, a friend, a woman to care for you someday

You have always been there for me, and I wish to do the same, and I wouldn’t have it any other way

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