Mothers

Because today is a day we honor our mothers, I have done much thinking about the importance of loved ones like our mothers and the importance of having a day like this; yes, the cynical side of me thought this is an artificial holiday created by card and flower companies in a ruse to make money. Then I realized so what if it’s a contrived holiday? Does my mind’s perceived origins of it mean that its aim is disingenuous? The answer is no; the holiday may fall on the second Sunday for arbitrary and questionable reasons, but we embrace it because mothers truly do deserve a holiday to recognize all they do for us.

In my life, I am lucky enough to have 2 mother figures. The first is my actual mother (a true red if you read my last piece), and I also have my wife, the mother of our 2 sons. (I failed to include my older sister in to this group as she is a mother of three). Each of these figures brighten my life, albeit in different ways. My mom only wants what is best for me, and will stop at nothing to make sure I receive the best of everything. I hate to use the term ‘Tiger mom’, but this is a woman who practiced as an Emergency Department physician and put her children through Yale, Harvard, and Tufts. Not only that, but she encouraged and supported my sister and me in our paths to medicine, with my older sister being an Emergency Department physician and me being a Family Practice doctor. She also wholeheartedly supported my younger sister’s less “conventional” choice of working in the financial sector. As hard as I may try not to call her a ‘Tiger mom”, this perfectly describes her.

My wife is different; she is more passive than my mother; but don’t be mistaken, this passiveness does not mean she has accomplished any less in her life. She graduated with a degree in Psychology from Harvard, and now practices as a Family Physician in Michigan and somehow manages to be an amazing mother while working on a full-time basis. Their mothering styles are different; the best example I can give is that if something were standing in the way of what either I or my sons needed, my mom would have no problem stepping on some toes to get what was needed. My wife, on the other hand, would make sure not to step on anyone’s toes but would still succeed at obtaining what was needed. Neither way is better, actually in both cases they get what they desire. I realized in thinking of the importance of them in my life that a day devoted to their appreciation is not enough. If I could I’d treat every day as if it were Mother’s Day to thank them for everything they do.

But this is only the brief description of my story and the importance these mother figures play in my life. There are almost 7.5 billion people on this planet; and every one of them has or had a mother. So my story, and the importance of the mother figures in my life is one of 7.5 billion. So call your mother today and tell her 2 things:
1. How much you love her
2. How lucky you are to have her in your life