The most influential person in everybody’s lives is their mother. She was there for us from the moment we were born, until we are ready to face the outside world. Being a mother is more than just being a personal cook, or chauffer. Our mothers have taught us so many life lessons when we were young. What we learnt as a child is what helped build our character, and make us into smart, responsible people. We had the opportunity to interview some lovely ladies, who were more than happy to anonymously share some beautiful life lessons taught by their mothers.
“My mother taught me how to be independent. From a young age, she made sure that I helped out with the chores, and included me while making family decisions. When we moved to a new country, she even let me set up my room. She respected me, and treated me as an equal. That has really helped make me the strong woman that I am today.”
“My mother taught me how to love myself. I was, and still am an extremely caring person. I would go out of my way to help people that I love. That resulted in me getting hurt really often. I remember, my mother took me to a fancy restaurant one evening, and left me there. She wanted me to go on a ‘date’ with myself. I thought that it was an absurd idea. However, when she came back to pick me up, I realized how much it actually helped me. I had a lot of time to think, and understand myself. Having some ‘me time’ is extremely important to be happy and content with life.”
“My mother taught me how important it is to stand up for myself. As a child who was constantly bullied, and now as a young lady who is judged because of my ethnicity, I found it really hard to hold my head up high. My mother taught me how to be strong and helped me gain confidence. She never encouraged me to physically fight back against the bullies, but instead enrolled me in a self-defense class. She would constantly remind me about what a good person I am, and how much I’ve accomplished. That really helped boost my confidence.”
“My mother taught me how to be a good mother! When I was growing up, I thought that my mother was too strict, and I secretly wished she could be as liberal as my friends’ mothers. However, now that I have my own kids, I find myself being just like my own mother. Now I realize that everything she did, or said was for my own good. I feel confident that I can raise my children to be good human beings just like how my mother brought me up.”
“My mother taught me how to be myself. As a teenager, I always knew that I liked girls. I was extremely scared to talk to my parents about it, because I imagined that they would hate me. Somebody found out and spread a rumor about me in school. People started to say some really bad things, and my mother was called in to school. I was extremely scared that she had to find out this way, but she took it really well. She hugged me and said that she was proud of me. I’ve never been scared to be myself ever since then.”
“My mother taught me how to be a graceful woman. I was an extremely rebellious teenager, who colored her hair pink and wore too much make up. I would do anything to get attention! When I was sixteen, my mother bought me this beautiful pink dress for my junior prom. She did my make up, and curled my hair too. I felt like the most beautiful girl in the world! My mother taught me how I could look good, and actually feel good at the same time. I learnt that if I love myself, I could be confident, graceful and elegant, and people would respect me more for who I am, and not who I portray myself as.”
“My mother taught me to dream big. When she was growing up, she didn’t have many opportunities. She spent all her life taking care of her family, and making sure that we were happy and content. When I told my mother that I wanted to start a company, she told me that I could do it. She never believed in the concept of ‘being realistic’ or ‘being practical’. My mother gave me the confidence that anything is possible, and can be achieved.”
“My mother taught me to count my blessings. It has made me more compassionate towards other people. We didn’t have a lot of money, but she would donate food and clothing to the lesser privileged every month. That was what made her such a remarkable human being.”
