A Tribute to my Mother

This post isn't exactly about Arabs, but since today is Mother's Day and I am in another country with no convinient way to call my mother, I felt the need to put a Mother's Day tribute on my blog. If you don't like mushy stuff and only want to read about Arabs, skip to the posts below.

I never appreciated just how much I expected my mother to be until I went to college. Only then did I realize all of the different roles I had taken for granted that she was able to play.

First of all, she was my doctor all growing up and even in college. When I was going through a medically-difficult year, I felt like I was calling my mother every other week, telling her my symptoms and asking her to diagnose them--and most of the time she was right. Not only did she diagnose my symptoms, but she also gave me a "prescription," telling me what foods to eat, what medicine to take, and what to tell the doctor I had, if it got to that point. For example, one time last year I had extreme vertigo for more than a week, and when I called and asked her about it, she suggested it could be an inner ear infection. Sure enough, when I took the correct medication I was fine.

All of this medical knowledge came not from a formal medical education, but years of experience through raising seven children. Impressed yet?

Not only has my mother been my doctor, but she has also been a friend to whom I could rant and rave--especially about Arabic. Last year when my classes and jobs were so intense I thought I wouldn't survive, I would call my mother, tell her I just needed to complain, shout about how much I hated Arabic, and then calmly thank her and hang up. She never felt the need to give me advice or tell me that I didn't really hate Arabic, which would have only irritated me. Instead, she realized that I just needed to express my feelings and listened accordingly.

My mother is also my biggest fan. Whenever I feel pleased with an accomplishment, I call and tell her why she should be excited for me--even if it is only the fact that I saved $75 at the bookstore and only spent $13. She is always appropriately happy for me, and once again I hang up and go on with my life, feeling better after being able to express my opinion to someone who cares.

One of the things I love most about my mother is that she is always there. Since she began having children she and my father made an executive decision that she would stay at home with the children, and I have never heard any complaints from her about having stayed at home for more than 25 years while the rest of us went off and had adventures. Last year, while I was living in Jerusalem, she and my father went to Hawaii for their anniversary--the first time my mother had been out of the continental United States. My parents are coming at the end of my program in Jordan and I will give them a tour of Israel and Jordan, and it will be the first time my mother has been out of the US.

Finally, I have seen extreme sacrifices that my mother has made, without complaint and even happily if it blesses the life of her family. For example, this past Christmas my mother received a wedding ring from my father to finally replace the one she sold more than fifteen years ago to pay the bills. When your children are hungry, your husband is in school, and your grocery budget is $10/week to feed 5 children and 2 adults, the expensive ring on your finger somehow loses its value in your eyes. Several years ago she got a nice CTR ring and wore that on her wedding finger until my parents felt good about spending the money on another wedding ring.

Basically, I can agree with Abraham Lincoln and say that all that is good in my life has been taught to me by my mother. Thanks Mom, and happy Mother's Day!